Hearing the Unspeakable
by Nondescript
Summary: A sequal to Touching the Improbable. The search is almost at an end to find the criminal mastermind Tah's been searching for. Will she complete her mission alive? FINISHED
1. Rot in Food Courtia

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Invader Zim. I also don't own any situation found in any Sherlockian story or pastiche.  
  
Chapter One: Rot in Food Courtia  
  
An eyelid opened to reveal a dark green orb, so dark it was almost black in color. Tired limbs lifted themselves up and a small figured reluctantly crawled out of bed. He shuffled over to the tiny window of his domicile and watched as the night began to silently drift off the landscape. Reddish pink sunbeams began to filter through the sky, cut into interesting designs by the multi-leveled buildings that covered every inch of the ground. A frown emerged on the face of the man - the scene had been beautiful before he'd noticed the buildings.  
  
Yempt glanced around at his three roommates, all blanketed over in some form of sleep or another. He scowled at them, reminding himself of each of their particular faults, and continued to get ready for work. He was a waiter on Food Courtia. It wasn't a glamorous job, but Yempt comforted himself with the fact that he worked at a real restaurant unlike those unfortunate screw-ups who were banished there. He knew he was short, and seeing as height was everything to an Irken, he didn't expect much from life. Glaring at himself in the mirror, he once again noticed his unusual eyes. He'd always wanted common red eyes, and even rarer purple eyes would have done, but to be stuck with such an oddity was something that rubbed against Yempt's very nature. He grumbled and pulled on his uniform before leaving to perform his duties.  
  
His duties weren't extremely strenuous, consisting of the things waiters generally did: seating customers, taking orders, delivering food, giving the bill. Yempt had learned to be satisfied with it, and managed to go throughout the day without letting his pessimistic, sarcastic thoughts slip past his tongue. He'd made the mistake of speaking his mind once when he'd first been given his assignment, but his superior had made it very clear to him that such attitude would not be tolerated. From that day forth Yempt just went along his way, allowing the contemptuous rot in his mind to build up and transform into a general dislike if not hate for all living things.  
  
On his break he generally ate in the lower sections of Food Courtia, where one could find the cheaper and unfortunately greasier selections of food. As he made his way there that day, someone very small caught his eye. This Irken was actually shorter than himself, which was a distinguishing feat. He wore a stained red military shirt and stood stiffly at the entrance to one of the communal sitting/eating areas. Yempt glanced over at the line of fast food joints and their advertisements for their disgusting foodstuffs and decided that perhaps he'd skip lunch that day. He marched over to the one dressed as a soldier and looked him over with a displeased expression. " - What are you doing?" he finally asked.  
  
This had gotten the other's attention. The soldier saluted and retained his militaristic stance. "Guarding the food court!"  
  
Yempt cocked one eye and glanced about, more for show then for any actual purpose. He crossed his arms and scowled. "I wasn't aware there were guards on Food Courtia. You're the first one I've seen." He made an effort to make the sarcasm drip from his mouth. It felt so good too finally be able to talk to someone.  
  
The guard seemed unaware of the sarcasm. "I've been assigned to guard the entire planet!" The guard straitened himself, if it was possible for him to stand any straighter. Yet, a small grin on the Irken's face revealed that the absurdity of the situation wasn't completely lost on him.  
  
"The entire planet? How are you supposed to - nevermind. WHY were you assigned to do that?"  
  
"To gain life experience in preparation for more challenging assignments." This was said in such a way as to make the waiter think it was a quote.  
  
"So - you're preparing for a promotion? What's your name?" Yempt tapped his foot impatiently.  
  
"Skoodge, at your service!" Skoodge clicked his heels while Yempt almost smiled, which would be the equivalent to doubling over in laughter for him. He'd heard of Skoodge - that Irken had begun to become a common joke. Poor, gullible Skoodge. Yempt almost felt like he was talking to a celebrity. He was just the sort of go-getter Yempt had never even attempted to be, realizing the futility at an early age. "You?"  
  
The waiter cringed at the question. Aside from his eyes, Yempt's name was the one thing he hated most about himself. It was strange sounding, awkward, and downright ugly. It was traditional for Irken's to have one syllable long names, but the population was growing and the amount of one syllable name combinations were running low. Yempt assumed that it was only a matter of time before they were forced to start using two syllables, but that didn't really matter to him. What mattered to him was the fact this occurrence was responsible for his stupid name. "...Yempt."  
  
Skoodge nodded at him and smiled. "Nice to meet you."  
  
Yempt rolled his eyes. "What's so nice about it? You're here on Food Courtia, for Irk's sake! You should be miserable -"  
  
The soldier just shrugged his broad shoulders. "It's not so bad. There's all sort of interesting people here."  
  
Yempt examined the throngs of gorging lifeforms with a contemptuous eye. Everyone seemed equally disgusting to him in their own right, and he could see no reason to take special notice of any of them. He narrowed his eyes at Skoodge and grunted. "They aren't interesting."  
  
"Sure there are!" There was something in the soldier's voice that made Yempt believe that he was not the sort of person to give up easily. He resigned himself to listen to the explanation. "For instance, look over there." Skoodge pointed to a female Irken, grotesquely tall and casually sitting alone at one of the booths. In one hand she held a burger and in the other an electronic pad. She chewed on one while she examined the other. She didn't wear any uniform Yempt could recognize, but a tan- colored outfit matched with brown boots and gloves. "She's one of the most interesting people I've seen here," continued Skoodge. "She comes here all the time and is always staring at that pad of hers. Either that or she leans back in her booth with her eyes closed. When I first saw her like that I thought she was sleeping, but she was thinking. She's always thinking about something."  
  
"She's crazy," was Yempt's simple response. "I've seen her too. Whenever she needs to go somewhere nice to eat, she comes to the restaurant where I work. She refuses to eat anything unless she's personally met everyone in the establishment. Afraid she'll get poisoned or something -" He pursed his lips in a deeper frown when he considered the woman. "She must have been banished or something - wearing civilian cloths."  
  
Skoodge shrugged. "Maybe she's on a special assignment."  
  
Yempt directed his glare toward his companion. "You're an optimist, aren't you? Well, that's just stupid. Did you know you're the laughing stock of the Irken race? The Tallest tried to KILL you. Then they sent you to that horrible 'training' planet promising to promote you. Then rather than promoting you, they send you to gain 'life experience' when you've already succeeded in invading a planet. When are you going to get the picture? Nothing good is ever going come of your hard work. You might as well just give up now!" Yempt knew he was ranting, but he was having more fun then he'd had in a long time. He motioned toward himself. "Look at me! I'm short too, but I know my place. I don't put idle hopes in foolish dreams - I complacently do my job. I'm satisfied!"  
  
Skoodge shook his head. "I feel sorry for you."  
  
This comment was too much for Yempt to bear. He threw his hands up in the air, growling as he turned and walked away. He had to get back to work.  
  
That night he was in for a surprise that he would one day regret. He was performing his usual tasks, minding his own business, when he saw that woman walk in the restaurant. For some reason the usually capricious owner allowed her to dine there even though she was obviously no noble. He figured it was because of her height, but even then she didn't fit in with the crowd. Although she always dressed properly for the occasion, this woman didn't carry the right air about her. One thing Yempt enjoyed about working at such a high-end establishment was that he was always surrounded by the pompous upper class who only worked to affirm his grim views of society. She blew all his theories away.  
  
"Hey there, Yempt! How are you today?" The woman smiled at him, waving one gloved hand in his direction. She was now wearing a deep scarlet gown that matched her eyes and long black gloves.  
  
"Very well, Miss Tah. Shall I escort you to your usual table?"  
  
"Sure thing. I've got some guests arriving - they'll mention my name." She followed him to her table, a rather secluded booth in the corner of the swanky hall, pulling out her infernal pad the moment she sat down. "Thank you, Yempt," she said as she looked down at its surface with a look of concentration.  
  
Yempt sighed and walked away, picking up some used dishes as he passed by. It was minutes before Tah's guests arrived in the form of two finely dressed gentlemen. One was Irken with pastel red eyes while the other was a Belthorp, looking like an insect with his brown, segmented body. Both were obviously gangsters. He politely led them to the table and they seated themselves across from Tah in her booth. Yempt shuddered as he saw them eye her with hungry eyes, but he guessed that was what Tah had anticipated. She smiled seductively at the both of them, and even teased the Irken's jaw with the gloved tip of one of her claws.  
  
All three of them seemed very friendly with one another throughout the various courses of their dinner. There was laughter and flirtation - the general sort of thing that occurred when long separated friends finally got together. It was nights like these that made Yempt suspicious of Tah's character, wondering if she'd been banished. After dessert they quieted their tones to hushed speech - leaning forward as they spoke on more business-like matters. Tah pulled out her pad once again, apparently checking some things with her various notes. She nodded and asked questions of the men, and they responded with shifty eyes. This lasted very late into the night, and Yempt was beginning to get upset. Closing had come and gone and it was past time for him to go to bed. After all, he'd have to get up and do the exact same thing tomorrow. He haughtily began to approach the booth when the owner, an overbearing female Irken who stood a good four inches taller than Yempt, pulled him away. "Let them finish their talk, boy," she hissed maliciously. "She's a good customer, and we want her to return!"  
  
Yempt sighed with acceptance and waited until he could finally clean her booth. He wanted to hurry, but knew he was too short to do a sloppy job. Therefore he made certain everything was just as it had been before anyone had arrived. If it weren't for his attention to detail, he would have missed a small piece of paper that had found its way under the table. He picked it up and examined its surface. On one side it read in strait, black slashes 'XIIIIXIXXIXIXXXIIV.' He realized that it must have belonged to either Tah or one of her cohorts. He considered leaving it, letting chance take the responsibility, but instead his hand shoved the piece of paper into his pocket.  
  
Once back to his quarters he went directly to bed. His roommates had all left for their late night shifts, something that pleased Yempt greatly, and he lost no time in drifting into the nothingness of slumber.  
  
The next day began as all days did for Yempt. He got up, taking a short wistful glance at the window before remembering how much he despised the universe, glared around at his sleeping roommates, got dressed, and headed off to report for duty. He ate where he usually ate lunch, this time ignoring Skoodge as he stood patrol. As he chewed on his burrito his deep green eyes shifted toward Tah. She sat in the exact same seat she had when he'd seen her the other day, and he supposed that she was a slave of habit.  
  
A thought crossed his mind and he fingered through his pocket. The paper he'd found the other day was still there, and he wondered if he should return it. It certainly had something to do with some illegal activity, considering the kind of people Tah'd been with the night before. Yempt could tell Tah was upset about something as he examined her face - she was staring at her pad with her brow furrowed in worry. He watched her as she looked in each of her pockets and scratched her head in confusion. She'd definitely lost something and the waiter was sure he had what she'd lost. He mused too himself whether he should give it back or not. It would probably do some harm if he gave it back, but then again, did something like that really matter? He figured it would make more sense to gain some brownie points with a tall person. He finally decided to stand up and head toward her table. She glanced down at him to look him in the eye, despite the fact she was sitting. He held out the paper and frowned at her. "I found this under your table," he said in what he hoped was a distant voice.  
  
Her face brightened immediately as she grabbed the paper from her hands. "Thank you!" she said with a brilliant smile. "One of my guests gave me this, and I was looking all over for it. I just don't know how to -" her words halted for a moment as her gaze drifted past him. Her eyes sharpened with recognition and her expression darkened for a moment, but this only lasted for a fraction of a second. Her face immediately lifted again as she beamed at Yempt. "I just don't know how to thank you, er, what's your name?"  
  
Yempt was startled for a moment. She'd never forgotten his name in all the time she'd been coming to his restaurant and why she'd forget now was beyond him. However, he suspected it had something to do with her disgusting height. "Yempt," he reminded in a flat tone, "Yempt."  
  
"Yes, yes, well, it's very nice to meet you!" Her voice was uncommonly loud. "You say you saw me drop this? Well, thanks for bringing it back." She nodded happily at him and returned to her work. Yempt eyed her before turning back to his table. This woman was even stranger than he'd originally thought.  
  
That evening was similar to the previous evening. Rude customers had kept him up late and he was only half aware as he got ready for bed. He lumbered toward the cleansing room, opening the door only to be shocked by a piercing red light. The light only lasted for a moment, but the surprise of it caused Yempt to stand still for a long time. He finally glanced behind him and gasped when he found a blackened spot on the floor. He poked his head into the cleansing room, and sure enough a laser had been set up in such a way as to fire when the door opened. Luckily for Yempt whoever had constructed the apparatus had miscalculated his stature, supposing him to be slightly taller then he really was. Yempt hurried to dismantle the laser and hide the evidence, but he was severely shaken up. He didn't sleep a wink that night, imagining someone climbing through the window or bursting through the door to raid his quarters and murder him in his sleep. Instead of facing those horrific thoughts, Yempt pulled himself out of bed and wandered the streets of Food Courtia until it was time for him to work.  
  
As he worked he regularly glanced at the time meter, anticipating his lunch break. He knew who he had to blame for the attempt on his life, and he was dead set on giving her a piece of his mind. The moment he was free, he stormed to her usual seat and glared at her with steaming eyes. "You!" he pointed at her.  
  
"Me?"  
  
He growled in anger. "Yes, you! I don't know what sort of low-lifes you associate with, or what kind of sordid affairs you participate in, and I don't really care - but I don't want to be a part of it!" He trembled with anger as he remembered the blackened spot on the floor. The shot would have killed him in one hit.  
  
"What happened?" asked Tah frantically.  
  
"Oh, I think you know." Yempt moodily placed his hands on his hips as he sneered at her contemptuously. "The laser? Last night? Trying to KILL me?"  
  
A hand flew to Tah's mouth as her eyes opened wide. "Oh no," she whispered as she slightly shook her head. "They think you're with me."  
  
"What?" Yempt didn't trust her apparent innocence.  
  
The gears in Tah's brain began to turn. "Well," she said in a somewhat braver voice, "I guess there's only one way to protect you now." As she pulled out her pad she reached over with one of her long, slim arms and forced Yempt into the booth with her. He noticed that she had one of the more advanced electronic pads in production and he wondered how she attained her funding. Then he thought of the men she'd been with and wondered no more. She tapped in a few commands and the pad sprung to life with the image of two men - apparently it was one of those expensive models that could be used as a monitor as well. It was then that Yempt noticed who the two men were. They were none other then the Almighty Tallest themselves, Tallest Red and Tallest Purple. Yempt couldn't believe she'd gotten through to them, but what really shocked him was that his monarchs didn't seem upset that she had. Yempt could only cower in his seat as he stared blankly at the two personages.  
  
"Tah!" cheered Tallest Purple as he recognized her image.  
  
"Hey," said Tallest Red as he waved one hand at her, "How you doing?"  
  
Tah smiled at the both of them before getting to her point. "I'm doing very well, my Tallest. I've just called ask about something."  
  
"Ask away!" Yempt couldn't believe what he was hearing. Not only was this Tah person talking with the Almighty leaders of Irk, but they actually seemed excited to hear from her and willing to give her whatever she wanted. He wondered exactly how deep her criminal manipulation had infiltrated - his dark mind was convinced she was no respected soldier.  
  
She grabbed Yempt by the shoulders, much to his extreme annoyance. "Do I have the power to, say, recruit people into my service - like if I needed help with something and had to take them away from their job for a while?" Now Yempt realized that not only were her hands on his shoulders to display him, but also to keep him from escaping.  
  
"Do whatever you need to do!" ordered Tallest Red with his notoriously evil grin.  
  
Tah wiggled her antennae. "Thank you, my Tallest."  
  
"Sweeping authorization," sounded Tallest Purple from his comrade's side. "That's what you have!"  
  
Tah nodded and wiggled her antennae once again. "Yes, my Tallest." There was a familiarity in her voice that Yempt didn't trust.  
  
"Oh, and Tah," added Purple after a moment. "Are you going to call tonight?"  
  
"Of course," reassured Tah in a softer tone.  
  
Tallest Red snickered and nudged Tallest Purple, who in response glared at him. "Stop that!" he said with every nudge. "Stop it.........Stop it!.........Stop it!"  
  
Yempt could hear a silent giggle escape Tah's throat as she watched the ridiculas behavior of their leaders. "I'll report in later, my Tallest," she said with a broad grin.  
  
Both the Tallest turned their attention to her for a brief moment to say their goodbyes before they began goofing off again. Yempt rolled his eyes and folded his arms in anger. The moment the image of the Tallest were gone he turned sharply to the woman beside him.  
  
"What are you trying to do? How do you get access to them, and why are you asking them what you asked? What are you going to do to me? I don't care - I'm not going to cooperate!" He slumped his shoulders, still unable to escape her firm yet gentle grip.  
  
"You have to cooperate," she said urgently into his antennae. "If not, you'll be killed!"  
  
"Threatening my life now, are you? I'm not going to be a part of it!"  
  
"You already are - and don't speak so loud!" Now her voice contained a harsh tinge. "Let me explain what I'm doing here! They saw you hand me that paper the other day. They are a crime syndicate I've been trying to dismantle for the last two years. Only now am I close to removing their head, severing the link that allows such an organized machine to run. I'm not the bad guy!" She shook him slightly.  
  
"I saw you with those gangsters last night! Don't think I didn't notice! How stupid do you really think I am?"  
  
"Small timers in comparison. Dealing with the likes of them is a necessary evil in my current line of profession. They're one of my sources to the criminal underworld, filthy yet harmless."  
  
Yempt again rolled his eyes. "What - you want me to believe that you're some sort of disciplinarian meant to find and catch some evil mastermind who controls a gigantic crime syndicate? Do you expect me to believe that? Why not just knock off the leader and be done with it?"  
  
Tah was silent for a moment, the tension growing within her. "No, he's too smart for that. This man sits in the center of his well-spun web, aware of every vibration at every point. Yet none of the filth of his activities touch him. He works through a highly complicated system of underlings and only sees the profits. At the end, there is no evidence as to his identity, no link to his guilt. Yet without him, I'm sure the entire system would collapse!" There was a great deal of passion in her words, and Yempt was surer than ever that she was completely berserk.  
  
"No one like that could ever exist! Some phantom of a mastermind pulling all the strings - come on! And what is with this well-spun web analogy? Are you trying to be eloquent or something? It's not going to work."  
  
Tah audibly sputtered for a moment. "What - what is wrong with you! Doesn't this scare you at all?"  
  
"No."  
  
"But the laser does, doesn't it?"  
  
"...Yes."  
  
"Will you trust me on the basis of that then?"  
  
"That's my basis for NOT trusting you!" He tried once more to squirm from her grasp.  
  
She let out an exasperated moan. "What about the Tallest? You saw that I was talking to them, didn't you? Certainly if they trust me, you can."  
  
"I don't know HOW you're manipulating them -"  
  
Now Tah yelled out in frustration before she was able to contain herself. Her grip tightened on his shoulders and she shut her eyes, apparently trying to think. "Fine then. You leave me no choice then to forcefully recruit you. I'm a higher rank then you, and as the Tallest themselves just said, I have the authority to do this. You and I are marching back to your place of work right now and telling them that you quit. You're helping me now. Even if you don't agree, you're employer must." 


	2. A Nightmare

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Invader Zim.  
  
Chapter Two: A Nightmare  
  
Yempt silently fumed as he accompanied Tah out of his former workplace. At first he'd attempted to run away from her, but that had only resulted in her carrying him along like a little smeet. Refusing to cope with that sort of humiliation, Yempt had finally agreed to follow her without a fight. However, he didn't have to be happy about it. He folded his arms and scowled at everybody who passed by, just to let them know he was not enjoying himself.  
  
Tah had drug him to the restaurant and explained to his superior that he was now working for her, an announcement that came with no dispute. Yempt showed no disappointment that he wouldn't be missed, being as he never expected anything different. He just accepted the truth and begrudgingly followed his new boss down the road. What happened to him wasn't under his control anyhow.  
  
Yempt's grim conclusions were interrupted when Tah glanced down at him and smiled. "So, where do you live?"  
  
"What do you care?" were the first words out of his sardonic mouth.  
  
"We need to get your things. You're quarters aren't safe anymore, so you'll be staying with me."  
  
The former waiter stopped in his tracks and shot his companion a stubborn glare. "You want me to move in with you?" He cocked one brow and sniffed in disapproval. "Forget it. I already doubt your sanity, and I don't need to be prompted to doubt your decency as well."  
  
Tah's maroon eyes were blank for a moment before they widened with the realization of what Yempt had insinuated. Then her eyes narrowed as a hint of worry began to lace her voice, "I'm sorry if we got started on the wrong claw, but I'm sure you're mistaken. Please just trust me - I'm trying to keep you safe." She let her expression fall into a lopsided grin, and Yempt began to sense that Tah was actually rather shy and awkward when it came to making new acquaintances. He had no intention of having her go through the experience of getting acquainted with him.  
  
"Right or wrong, you can keep your claws to yourself." He swiftly turned on heel and began to briskly walk away, but it was no problem for her to keep up with her long, gangly legs.  
  
"Come now, you don't want another laser incident, do you?" Yempt huffed slightly at the comment, but continued to ignore her. "I'm doing this for your protection. They've marked you for death, and I think you're going to need some help. You're quarters just aren't safe anymore."  
  
"What, and yours are? If being seen with you means being marked for death, I'd think going to your quarters would be suicide." He inwardly smirked as he felt her roll her eyes. He was actually enjoying himself - this was the most social contact he'd had in years. Deep down, he was starting to believe that this crazy Tah wasn't really some criminal, but that didn't mean he was going to lighten his disposition. Although he by no means liked this person, he definitely didn't dislike her as much as he did everybody else. The fact that she seemed to want to help him worked to her advantage. After a moment of serious consideration Yempt pursed his lips and glared down at the trash-cluttered street. "Fine, I'll do it, but you'd better leave me alone!"  
  
Tah smiled beside him, greatly relieved, and followed close behind as he led the way. She'd never met anybody quite like Yempt before. Certainly Clay had been rude when she'd first met her, and still was to tell the truth, but she was by no means hostile like this disgruntled waiter. There was something about him that didn't strike her as right - something in the way he seemed to frown at everything with a general air of discontent. Her mind clicked as she realized what it was. He was just so damned depressing!  
  
She wasn't sure whether she felt sorry for him or just considered him to be a nasty little bastard. Either way, she stopped him before he opened the door to his room. She cleared the way and carefully opened the door with one of the extendable pod legs. She felt slightly embarrassed when nothing happened: no poisoned darts flew through the air and no deadly explosions pierced the calm. She was sure Yempt was pinning her with a condescending look - she felt it in the back of her neck. She quietly decided he was just a nasty little bastard.  
  
They entered his rooms, which were even smaller then the ones Tah'd had as a student at the Soldier Academy. Not only that, but she counted four beds instead of two. It was then that she remembered that soldiers and other militarily important people generally got better treatment then the more utilitarian segment of the population. The place was filthy, dirty cloths and unwashed dishes everywhere. Tah supposed that the only somewhat clean area in the room belonged to Yempt, and she was right. He walked over to a tiny dresser and opened one of the drawers, pulling out a few sets of clothing. He set them on his bed and headed for the cleansing room to get some personal things. Tah took this chance to give a thorough examination to the room. She sat on Yempt's bed and let her gaze pan slowly from left to right. She saw a number of items of interests, including a bottle of Wintorian rum, a set of dusty bar bells, and a pile of saucy porn magazines. She wondered if she really wasn't doing Yempt a favor.  
  
After the clothing and Yempt's personal cleansing things were packed, he was ready to go. Tah wondered at the miniscule bag he held as he impatiently waited to leave. "Aren't you going to bring anything else?" She supposed that he'd at least have a book or something he'd like to take along.  
  
His impatient look only intensified. "No," he said in a tone that succeeded in ending the conversation. The two quietly walked out of the stinking rooms and made their trek to Tah's residence. Yempt was somewhat surprised when she took him to an even worse part of town and swerved to one of the more ill-kept docking bays. He glanced around anxiously, and actually leaned closer to Tah's side as his darting eyes spotted a number of aggressive-looking characters looming in the darkened alleyways. It seemed like hours before they finally reached their destination, and when Yempt first realized where that destination was a wave of sarcasm temporarily swept away all his fears. "You live in that?" They had stopped at a somewhat large Voot Cruiser. Living in one's ship was the equivalent to living in one's car and Yempt couldn't help but glower at Tah, as if he'd been tricked.  
  
Tah glanced at him and then moved over to a disgusting man with a beer gut and a laser at his side. He was sitting nearby the ship, and Yempt wondered what Tah could possibly have to say to him. His eyes widened with disapproval as she slipped some moneys into his greasy fingertips. "Thanks, Varg. I really appreciate it."  
  
"Is nothing," said the man. Yempt squirmed at his squeaky accent. "Is nothing at all." He grinned down at the moneys he'd received and tilted his head at Tah as he shoved them into his pocket and wobbled away.  
  
"Is he what you call protection for your ship?"  
  
Tah shrugged. "No one messes with Varg there. He's not too impressive himself, but he's the smuggling contact for a lot of fellows out here. If someone messes with him, he messes with them." Tah's explanation was mumbled as she fiddled with a code identification on her Voot. Once the ship beeped its approval, it asked for a rental scan. After that it asked for an identification card.  
  
"Is this all really necessary?" groaned Yempt as he tapped his foot on the dusty ground. He frowned when she didn't answer him. After a series of security checks the door finally opened to the ship and they were allowed to step inside. He was surprised at the cleanliness of the interior of Tah's ship, and actually found himself pausing so he could look around. Despite his former opinion of her, the condition of her living space was enough to convince him that she'd recently been in strict military service. There were an inordinate number of books stacked about, and Yempt could only suppose that Tah was one of those silent, reading types. Indeed she didn't seem to have to need to make conversation as she began to meander about her 'quarters,' tidying up and setting things out so she could supposedly work. Yempt set his small bag on the floor and sat, watching her take out the piece of paper he'd given her. She stared at if for a moment and then bent over her notes. Yempt actually found that he was curious about what she was doing. "What's so important about this guy you're looking for, anyway? There's a lot of criminals out there - easier ones with bounties."  
  
Tah's back hardened as the question was asked. "I was assigned to get this one in particular. A mission from the Tallest themselves."  
  
Yempt was impressed, but refused to show it. He grunted and continued with his questioning. "But why this jerk? Tallest have some vendetta against him?" He crossed his arms. "If you don't tell me I'm not coming with you."  
  
Tah sighed at his attitude, resigned to ignore it. "He's responsible for a variety of things. Drug running, assassinations, theft, forgery - you name it. You remember the hatchery disaster two years ago?"  
  
"Of course I remember that." Even someone as cold-hearted as Yempt had been shocked to the core when that tragedy had happened.  
  
Tah shook her head. "It was all because of insurance money. Someone got rich off of that!" She made a disgusted sound. "Around the same time as that I ran across a base full of thousands of ships. I didn't know it at the time, but that was a base of operations for - slave transport." She lowered her head back towards her work.  
  
Yempt raised one brow. "Impressive." It was difficult to imagine such a diverse ring of corruption, but he had no choice but to believe this woman. He watched while she examined the paper, peering at the black slashes on its surface as if they were suddenly going to change. He eventually got bored again. "What is that?"  
  
"It's a tip from one of the guys I ate with the other night. It's supposed to tell me where my final pray is - be the link to end this mess I've gotten myself into. But I can't figure out what it means!" She placed the paper delicately on the table, although it seemed more like she wished to throw it on the floor. She leaned back and rubbed her temples. "It's coded somehow, but I don't know what it means."  
  
An amused sound escaped Yempt's mouth. "Feh. I thought it was your job to do stuff like that!" He could tell his comment had annoyed his new companion. She glanced over at him through the corner of her eye, eventually deciding to stand.  
  
"You, do something. I've got some books over there. I'm going to go make a call." Apparently it was a private call, because Tah left through a door that led to another section of the ship, possibly her sleeping quarters. Yempt watched her go before sulkily scrutinizing the room. There were a lot of books, but reading had never been Yempt's thing. He'd always figured that if he were meant to do that sort of thing, he would have trained to be some sort of scholar. He slouched in his seat, which although wasn't comfortable was at least bearable, and drifted slowly to sleep.  
  
Later that night Tah emerged from her room with a smile on her face and a song in her squiggly pooch. She absently played with one of her curled antennae as she stepped into the main section of her ship, pausing when she saw the small, slumbering Irken before her. It didn't look like he'd moved from when she'd left him, and she figured he couldn't be comfortable in a chair. She glanced around a bit before heading back to her room. She came back with a pillow and carefully maneuvered it under his head. She didn't want to wake him, but at least this way he'd be less sore when he awoke. With the way Yempt was already, she'd hate to see how he'd act after a bad sleep. She then stretched her long frame and went off to get something to eat. Once that task was accomplished she rubbed her eyes and began to feel a little tired herself. With a final glance at her guest she lumbered to her room and began to get ready for bed.  
  
###################################################################  
  
Tah stood at her old work station and stared at the blank monitor. Upon looking down she noticed she was wearing the plain, black uniform of a researcher. She automatically sat in the empty chair and began to search around for her list of things to research, but there was none to be found. She looked from side to side, but the information wasn't there. Although it was impossible to do any work without a list of things to look up she decided to turn on her monitor anyway. Looking at its activated screen seemed to sooth her and she smiled with contentment. She felt safe and warm and happy before a hand reached forward and turned the monitor off. She followed the hand's arm to face Tzen, her former supervisor. He smiled at her with his jolly face, but Tah could sense he wasn't happy. "You shouldn't be working here," he said. "You need to go."  
  
"I need to be here," she protested. She didn't know why she'd said that, but was controlled by more that just her rational senses.  
  
"It's not your job." Tzen shook his head and placed a hand on her shoulder. Although he was so much smaller than she, he was able to lift her out of her chair, forcing her to stand. He motioned toward the door and Tah felt she had no choice but to do as he wished. She dejectedly left the room and found herself in Purple's quarters. She wasn't surprised that she didn't end up in the hall, although something in the back of her mind told her she should be. She felt something stroking one of her antennae and a bare hand came up from behind her to caress her cheek. The hand gently slid down her neck and playfully traced the line of her collar. She turned around and embraced the person behind her, feeling again the warm safeness that the monitor had represented. She glanced up to look into Purple's eyes, and felt a flutter in her squiggly pooch when he smiled down at her. They were now both sitting on his couch, like they had so many other times before, only now the couch was much longer and wider - more like a bed. It seemed natural when the both leaned back into a more comfortable position, Tah leaning slightly on Purple's chest. She turned to face him, and realized her hand was traveling up the side of his body. She watched her hand with curiosity, wondering why she didn't seem to have any control over its actions. She shrugged the worry off and watched as the hand made its way over Purple's robes, past his stomach and chest and curling around the back of his neck. She gently rubbed her thumb against his soft flesh, and she couldn't help but lean forward and kiss him. It was a strange kiss, a simple pressing of the lips where neither party made an effort to respond. Dissatisfied, she shifted her body to straddle him and smiled when she felt the lithe body under her shiver when her pelvis rested upon his. She lowered the rest of her body and rested her head next to him, snuggling with affection. Another shift occurred and Tah realized that her body was no longer the one on top. She shut her eyes and felt her fingers run down Purple's back. She felt a humid, spicy breath and realized that he was trying to kiss her. She opened her eyes only to scream out. The blue-skinned form of Montoy loomed above her like a venomous snake ready to bite. His disgusting, long black hair hung down, annoying her face and getting in her eyes. She quickly pushed him off and ran out of the room, terrified that the mercenary might follow.  
  
She stumbled and found herself in a room of black. Something told her she was alone now. She rubbed her neck, trying to get the humid feeling of Montoy's breath to disappear as she looked around. Something about the texture of the ground she walked upon made her believe she was in some sort of cave. Her eyes adjusted to the darkness, and her feet had been correct - she was surrounded on all sides by brown, rock walls. She looked up and saw the blackness of space above her, dotted with the brilliant stars. As she stared up at them she thought they slightly moved and she wondered if she was inside some sort of asteroid. She pushed the thought from her mind. She couldn't be in an asteroid because there was a spring right beside her - springs didn't bubble up on the frozen surface of an asteroid. Tah quickly turned to look at the stream, recalling that it hadn't been there before she'd looked up at the sky. Perhaps she'd just missed it, but how could she have. She let her gaze become lost in the water's silvery surface and she was tempted to touch the dangerous liquid. She reached out her hand for that very purpose, and let the surface of her glove become engulfed - tempting fate. She was surprised to find that the water seemed cool through the protected layer of her glove. She pulled her hand out and looked up at the barren walls that surrounded her. With a sudden urge to escape, she let her pod legs emerge and help her as she climbed up the wall. When she reached the summit she gasped for breath, despite the fact she'd been under no real physical strain.  
  
She looked up to find Yempt standing there, his arms folded and his face twisted in a sardonic frown. He looked at her with his dark green eyes. "You'd better give up," he said calmly, sure that he was correct.  
  
"But I've already climbed up," Tah tried to explain.  
  
He shook his head. "You're not going to make it." With that grim prophesy Tah lost her balance and fell backward into the cave. Her pod legs flailed about but weren't able to grab a hold of anything. She fell - fell - fell -  
  
########################################################################  
  
Tah struggled and writhed in her covered, unable to kick herself free from them. She bolted up, realizing her body was slathered in sweat. She breathed deeply as she recalled herself from the dream. Fear encased her thoughts, and she held her head as she deeply breathed in the cool air of her bedroom. She'd had nightmares before, especially in the last year or so, and the same themes always rang in her head when she finally broke back into reality. She wanted a peaceful life. She didn't want to be afraid at every turn. She wanted to end the investigation. She wanted to be with Pur.  
  
//Who here thinks Yempt needs a boyfriend? *raises hand* 


	3. Getting Help

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Invader Zim  
  
Chapter Three: Getting Help  
  
The pain in his neck and shoulders was what woke Yempt in the morning. He scratched his stomach and adjusted himself in his seat. Cracking one eye, he realized that he wasn't in his room. He froze in confusion for a moment before he recalled the previous day's events. He grumbled and sat up, not noticing the pillow that had supported his head. Tah was sitting at her desk, again staring at that little piece of paper as she ate some cereal. Yempt usually didn't eat breakfast, but he noticed that a bowl had already been set out for him and he figured it wouldn't be a bad idea. He lumbered toward the table, massaging a shoulder with one hand.  
  
Tah didn't seem to notice him as he sat up in a chair, poured some cereal into a bowl, and began to begrudgingly much down on the grainy substance. Through sleep-stung eyes Yempt glared over at his new companion. It was because of her that things were different this morning, and he'd decided long ago he didn't like change. She seemed absorbed in her work, completely unaware that someone was shooting hate at her from the other side of the table. She absently leaned back in her chair, propping one boot up on the table. This casual action only worked to worsen Yempt's mood, and he decided to glance out of the window. He hopped out of his chair and peered through the roundish portal at the disheartening sight of the dock. Since it was early there weren't many people out aside from traders and the sort. There were a few drunken bodies lying about though, and it was this sort of characteristic Yempt focused upon. He shook his head thinking how disgusting this place was.  
  
He was jolted from his thoughts when he heard something bang against the floor. He turned about to see Tah lying there, looking both embarrassed and surprised. It seemed as if she'd leaned back a little too far. Yempt let the poison ooze from his mouth, "Graceful, are you? Maybe you should join the ballet."  
  
Tah tried to ignore the comment and lifted herself back up. She held out the piece of paper and slightly shook it as she spoke. "It is going to take me a while to figure this out."  
  
"So you're saying you're stupid?"  
  
She paused and couldn't help but frown at him. "No, I can get this. But I want it done soon, so I think we'd better get an expert."  
  
"So you're delegating the work to someone else? I thought you worked for a living." He crossed his arms and watched as Tah turned away slightly, apparently trying to hide her expression.  
  
"His name is Hotard - he lives on Resortia."  
  
Yempt cocked one brow. "Oh, I see why we're going." He leaned his back against the window and tried to look unconcerned, thought secretly he was somewhat excited. He was certain Irkens of his stature hardly got a chance to see the vacation planet, so he'd never hoped to experience it. Having an opportunity like this was something he'd never expected.  
  
Tah continued to explain. "He's a genius, and has been useful to a number of planetary systems. The Irkens are lucky that he's chosen to live on one of our planets. Although he refuses to pledge allegiance to anyone, he's a national treasure."  
  
Yempt rolled his dark green eyes. "When's the joining?"  
  
This got Tah's attention. "What?" She was slightly confused for a moment before her eyes narrowed at the sarcastic man before her. "Pardon," she mumbled as she stalked past him toward the cockpit. "We'll be leaving now, unless you have anything to do here?" She sent him a questioning glance.  
  
"In this stick pot?"  
  
Tah took that as a no and disappeared into the cockpit. Yempt grunted and took a seat by the window. He hadn't experience space travel since he'd finished his basic training and headed off to Food Courtia to become a waiter. Now he watched as the ship began to move under Tah's instruction. For the sheerest moment he wondered what the name of her craft was when there was a sharp jolt and Yempt jumped in surprise. He grabbed hold of the back of his seat, hoping something like that wouldn't happen again as he watched the people, streets, and buildings began to drift away. The sky became dark and it wasn't long before the intense gloom of space was everywhere. Yempt let his attention float away into the nothingness. He had to admit the stars were fascinating when they weren't shrouded with the lights from the city, but he disliked the total lack of color - the simple black and white nature of the view. The smoothness of the ride informed him that the ship was now being controlled by autopilot, but it didn't seem Tah was going to come out of the cockpit. Either she'd forgotten about him or he'd managed to make an impression on her.  
  
Yempt left the window to find something interesting to do, but he was dissatisfied with everything in the room. He wasn't very interested in reading - it always bored him - and there didn't seem to be much else to do. There was an electronic gaming pad sitting on one of the shelves. He picked it up and blew a thin film of dust off its surface. He sat in the corner for a moment and played a few games of cards, but even this wasn't enough to hold his attention span. He set it aside and sighed, beginning to resent his astoundingly horrible luck.  
  
It took a good portion of the day to get to Resortia, a planet green with well-manicured vegetation. Silvery bodies of liquid, safe for Irken enjoyment, dotted the surface and glimmered with the reflected light of a golden sun. The window interested Yempt once again and he paid close attention as Tah's Voot hovered beneath the tree line. She landed in a particularly dense portion of forest, Yempt assuming she was too paranoid to land in the open. She finally emerged from the cockpit, munching happily on a burrito. Yempt wondered where she'd gotten it, but asked no questions. He merely followed as she opened the ship hatch and hopped outside. As they left Yempt remembered to look at the side of the ship to see what it was called. "I.S.C. Feth Gra?" The name was in ancient Irken, a language Yempt couldn't even begin to comprehend. "I.S.C." he repeated. He glanced up at his companion, who had finished her snack and was now concerned with licking the grease off her brown gloved claws. "I.S.C.? This ship belongs to the Armada?"  
  
Tah gave him a look. "I'm still a soldier - I guess." She didn't seem sure of her status. "I don't get paid enough to have a craft of my own."  
  
"Well," said Yempt reluctantly, "Maybe you are on assignment for the Empire." He said this more to himself than to Tah, and he felt somewhat annoyed when he saw her smile at his admission. He decided to look around a bit - being on Resortia and all. He couldn't help but be disappointed at the thick, almost jungle-like brush around him. "I thought this was supposed to be a resort planet. Where's the resort?"  
  
"I think it's on the other side - I've never been there. There are some private residences around here, and Hotard lives just ahead." Just as Tah had predicted, the forest began to grow tamer, as if it had been manicured into some sort of disorganized garden. There were more flowering plants, and some of the bushes appeared to be haphazardly trimmed. In the distance was a large house-like thing, made of a brownish, muddy substance. Yempt began to seriously question this 'genius's' taste when he caught something in the corner of his eye. He yelped and found himself clinging onto Tah's boot. He repelled off her immediately, but continued to stare into the forest. Just a few meters away was a large - thing. It was simply gigantic - its hunched shoulders almost touching the higher branches of the trees. Its skin reminded Yempt of wrinkled, sagging leather and it had a long, swishing tail that left a clear mark of disarray behind the lumbering thing. He pointed at the thing and gaped, unable to move until Tah's face brightened and she began to approach it. His shoulders slumped - he should've known.  
  
"Hotard, how is your garden today?" called the investigator with a friendly air. The thing turned around and moved its wide mouth into something Yempt assumed was a smile.  
  
"Ser de kontra loo," said the beast with a deep laugh. Yempt perked up his antennae at the language. It sounded like ancient Irken, and he wondered why this - Hotard would know it. "Fra ma la dar'tra bich?" By the tone if its voice, he could almost wear it was teasing Tah.  
  
Tah seemed pleased by whatever the Hotard was saying and responded in the same tongue. "Me shoo gah. Huk'ra feth te liebe ich rak'ra shra. Va bri?"  
  
"Feh." Yempt glowered at the two. Although he had no interest in participating in the conversation, it bothered him to no end that he couldn't at least listen.  
  
As if she could read his thoughts, Tah turned toward him and attempted to clarify things. "His people can't speak the way we do, but he is capable of speaking the ancient. It's the only way to communicate with him."  
  
Yempt didn't care for the excuse. He continued to glare at Hotard as he lumbered his way before him. For a moment he was afraid the creature would walk right over him, but instead it stopped and lowered its withered head to examine him.  
  
"Gra shoo me ra f'thra?"  
  
Tah answered for him, and Yempt guessed she was informing Hotard of his ignorance of the language. He rolled his eyes - of course a waiter wouldn't know it. She then pulled out the piece of paper that had been giving her so much trouble and showed it to the beast. He glanced at it and made a great deal of humming noises, as if he were calculating something in that enormous head of his. He made a clicking sound in his mouth. He asked Tah a question. "Fra te kith pre ich Belthorp?" Tah nodded yes. Hotard mused for a bit and handed the paper back to Tah. "Resh la kipee rish'ra bra prauch te gra re khran'fe. Le pefta kush jemp'ke va doo ha'rew rah. Poe'ech ich va urha ger'ra ser me que'we bra. Kith zat. Zat ra."  
  
Yempt began to seriously wonder what Hotard had said. Tah's expression had visibly changed as she listened: her face had become very pale and she shifted her weight nervously from one foot to the other. A very small smile played on her lips, but her eyes were worried. She gulped and responded. "Gra le feth va Massive tra?"  
  
A laugh rumbled from Hotard's innards. "Te kith rah." He then lowered his head at Yempt in some sort of acknowledgment of his presence and turned back to whatever it was he was doing before - sniffing the flowers perhaps. Tah bowed her head at him and wiggled her antennae before leading Yempt back into the forest.  
  
"You might as well have left me in the ship."  
  
Tah scratched the back of her head, as if she were distracted by some thought. She then realized someone was talking to her and looked down at him. "Heh, well, he's someone worth meeting, really." She looked down at the paper with a new expression and stuffed it back in her pocket. "Hotard, that is..." Her mind seemed to drift.  
  
"Well..?" asked Yempt after a moment of silence.  
  
"Well?" Tah blinked. "Oh, yes! Well." She rubbed her hands together in an unconscious gesture of excitement. "Sorry, I forgot you couldn't understand him. Hotard solved the riddle and told me what the lines meant. He asked me if a Belthorp had been involved and I said yes, so he explained that they have a base ten system of counting. They don't write with letters, but with numbers. There was really no riddle at all - I just never thought it would be in that language. It isn't used much and - you know. I feel kind of dumb."  
  
Yempt couldn't resist. "You should."  
  
Tah bristled, but took the insult in stride. "The word on the paper means Massive. Whoever I'm looking for lives on our very own ship, the Massive. This narrows my search drastically."  
  
Yempt snorted his equivalent to a laugh. "Yeah, you just want to go there so you can see Tallest Purple. Like all the other half-witted females in the Irken Empire you seem to -"  
  
This time he had gone too far. Tah shot a surprisingly ferocious, seething glare in his direction. With one swift move she pulled him up by the collar and held him up to her face, grinding her teeth in anger. "I am NOT one of those nit-wits! I'm not like them! I have a JOB to do and I'm doing it, so you'd better just shut up, you depressing, hate-filled little - gra - rrrr..." She shut her eyes and tensed her muscles, making an obvious effort to restrain herself. She finally took a big breath and set Yempt down. "Sorry there," she said after a moment in a rather subdued voice. She began to walk back to the ship, and Yempt followed shakily in silence.  
  
########################################################################  
  
Red let out a content growl as he rubbed massaged his body with cleansing calk, letting its rough surface scrap away the day's accumulation of grime. The day had been especially long as there was a lot of boring official business that Purple had insisted just couldn't wait. Even now his friend was still obsessing over the details of some document, making sure every sentence was acceptable. They'd also reviewed some speeches and marked out new planets to conquer, although the latter wasn't necessarily as tedious to Red. He smirked as he looked at his reflection in the mirror - the Irkens were well on their way to universal domination. He gave one satisfied stretch and began to rub the chalk against his shoulder and neck when somebody ran into his cleansing room. Red could only blink in shock as Purple entered, holding the documents he'd been working on in one hand and a pad in the other.  
  
"Tahjustcalledandshesaidshe'salmostdoneandshesaystheguyisontheMassivesoshe'l lhavetocomeandshe'llbeheretomorrowsoweneedtogetourworkdonesoonsowecanseeherb eforeshestartsworkingandshesaysshelooksforwardtoseeingyoutoo,soweneedtogetou rworkdone!" While Purple frantically yelled he waved his arms about with uncharacteristic energy.  
  
Red narrowed his scarlet eyes. "I'm using the cleansing chalk!" he yelled, annoyed. He waved the chalk in the air to emphasize his point.  
  
Purple's eyes widened as he realized his companion was completely nude. He squeaked and hovered away, blurting out some apology. Red stared after him, not really knowing what just happened but finding it hilarious. There was a short pause of silence before he fell over in laughter. 


	4. The Slope of Corruption

//Thank you to Invader Myu/Utah, who helped me with this chapter. ^_^  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Invader Zim.  
  
Chapter Four: The Slope of Corruption  
  
Red yawned and leaned back in his chair, staring sleepily at the pile of policies Purple wanted him to review. He glanced over at his co-Tallest, who sat working at a hurried pace. He was making some changes to a speech or something - Red didn't care. He stretched his arms and scratched his head, his eyelids beginning to droop. "All nighters...." he said with apparent distain. He once again hunched over his work and examined the information before him - at least he was clean.  
  
Purple looked up at him, his eyes wide and awake. "Sorry Red, I just want tomorrow to be free. I've already rescheduled all the Invader transmissions......" He checked the time. "Hrm.you can go to bed if you want - I can do this."  
  
Red stood from his chair the moment the offer was made. "Thank you!" He began to hover to the door before he turned to look back at his friend. Purple had finished reviewing the speech and was now rushing about the room, looking for some books he needed for the next project. A frustrated expression covered his face and he deactivated his hover belt and began to use his long legs to walk at a much faster pace. Red shook his head, "There's no way you expected us to do all this tomorrow, is there?" Purple didn't respond, not noticing that his companion was still about. "You're going to kill yourself if you keep worrying so much."  
  
As fate would have it, Purple, still getting accustomed to walking on his feet, stumbled over his robes and began to fall forward. His head smashed into the wall and the numerous books he carried were flung from his grasping arms. He fell flat on his back and didn't move. Red hovered over to him, an amused grin playing on his face. "...Told ya."  
  
########################################################################  
  
Yempt glanced out the window as the I.S.C. Feth Gra was maneuvering into position in the Massive's docking bay. He shuddered when he noticed a few people waiting outside. The last thing he was looking forward to was some teary reunion. He shoved himself from his seat and followed Tah, unable to do much else.  
  
The first two people he noticed were standing in front: a very short lavender-eyed man and a pink-eyed female marauder. Yempt didn't recognize the male's uniform, but he knew it couldn't be anything too intensive - from the little guy's stature he certainly couldn't be on the Massive for anything physical. For a slight moment he mused that he and the lavender- eyed one were just about the exact same height when he noticed Tah's reaction to the female. Despite the fact that Tah loomed over the female marauder, once they had made eye contact she seemed to melt into a more submissive posture. Yempt warily eyed the marauder and her confident smirk, making a mental note she was yet another person to avoid.  
  
Then all thoughts vanished when he suddenly recognized that there was someone very tall standing, or rather hovering, behind these two more common Irkens. He let his eyes wander up the red and black robes until they rested on the face of one of his Tallest. It was Almighty Tallest Red come to see Tah of all people. He was brash, he was arrogant, and he looked really groggy. Yempt raised a brow when he noticed his ruby-eyed leader sway a little and let loose an unapologetic yawn. 'This is one of our leaders?' he thought sarcastically. He glanced over at Tah, who had also noticed her monarch. She wiggled her antennae in salute, but seemed rather confused. Her eyes danced about worriedly, as if she were looking for someone else.  
  
Her attention was forced back to Tallest Red when he addressed her. "Tah, nice to see you."  
  
She nodded her head respectfully. "Nice to see you too, my Tallest."  
  
Red visibly rolled his eyes and Yempt nearly fell over with shock when he actually hovered over to her and gave her a hug. "Just Red right now, geez!" His voice was somewhat annoyed. "You haven't been here for two years, ya know!" He pulled away from her, but one hand remained on her shoulder.  
  
She smiled at him. "Where's Purple?"  
  
Red's smirk widened. "Moron - he knocked himself out. He's in the infirmary now, but he should be awake in a couple hours."  
  
Tah's eyes widened at the information that he'd hurt himself, but there was also a smile of relief. Yempt scoffed at the thought that she would be so distraught over Tallest Purple's absence. He figured she was big-headed to expect the attention and foolhardy to have what he supposed was a crush on one of the two most powerful men of Irk. He folded his arms and listened as Tallest Red continued, "Why don't you say hi to you're little friends here?" He motioned toward the shorter ones waiting in line, although he didn't seem to know them well. He backed away and let Tah approached her friends.  
  
Yempt felt himself blush when Tah picked up the lavender-eyed male and smothered him in a shameful embrace. "Good to see you, Dak," she quietly said into the male's antennae. He only giggled and nuzzled his head deeper into her neck. She set him down and kneeled next to the marauder, who was beginning to tap her foot.  
  
"It's about time you got to me!" said the woman harshly, albeit with a smile. "I can see where I stand on your list of priorities." She glanced to the side and tried to frown.  
  
Tah shrugged her shoulders, seemingly pleased at her adversarial friend's greeting. "I'm sorry, Clay. Can you ever forgive me?"  
  
Clay sniffed. "I don't think so. After all, I'm throwing you a party at the Entertainment Center tonight." Her smirk turned into something more malicious. "You'd better be there."  
  
Tah stiffened, her antennae lowering a bit, and Yempt could tell that going to this Entertainment Center was what she'd had planned. However, she held up no resistance. "Of course." She stood to her full height again and Yempt frowned at her as she glanced toward him. "This is my - um - my associate, Yempt."  
  
Yempt made a concerted effort to glare at everyone - exempting his Tallest, of course - in order to make the right impression. His gesture did not have the desirable effect on the marauder, however. She narrowed her brilliant pink eyes at him and approached him, placing her face just inches away form his own. He pointed one gloved finger on his chest and growled, "I don't like you."  
  
In response Yempt deepened his frown and tried to look unimpressed. "I can see you have no taste."  
  
Clay gnashed her teeth and swung around in anger. She gave Tah a knowing look before stomping away, grabbing Dak's hand as she went, dragging him behind her.  
  
Yempt was shown a room of his own and given a short tour of the Massive. It was apparent to him the Tah had no intention of him being her actual 'associate.' Of course, that's what he'd expected - she only had him around for his own protection. Until she could think of what to do with him, he was free to do as he liked. Unfortunately that wasn't much, and at the end of the day, as he sat alone in his room, he decided that he would attend this party Clay had spoken of. After all, he could see how the people on the Massive, who he'd heard were an amazingly talented group, really behaved.  
  
He slid off his bed and picked up the electronic pad he'd been given that detailed certain sections of the Massive. He followed its directions until he successfully made his way to the dark, smoky room that seemed to pound music from every angle. He cringed at the heavy atmosphere, but walked in despite himself. He found a group of tables at the other side of the bar and could see where Tah and her friends were. He grumbled to himself and approached.  
  
Tah sat silently, still and awkward in the unfamiliar environment. Clay wasn't kidding when she said she'd organized a party - nearly every marauder on board was becoming drunk in her name. She'd never been a party girl and was very content to sip on her drink as she listened to Clay talk. Every once in a while she glanced around to see if she could catch a view of either of the Tallest, since Red had promised to bring Purple over whenever he awoke, but aside from that she was pretty sedate. Dak was also with them, and he shared her calm nature, so she wasn't completely out of place. She was slightly surprised when she felt a presence beside her and saw Yempt taking the seat beside her. She was about to greet him when he gave her a menacing glare that seemed to challenge her to question his appearance - she decided to remain silent. She turned back toward Clay, who was talking nonstop.  
  
"It's been my observation that when you first date a guy, that's as good as he's ever going to get. After that, there is a sure and steady decline in behavior. Take Urp, for instance. The moment Yat deemed to join him, he began leaving the disposal lid up. He never did that while they dated. I like to call this decline of behavior the slope of corruption." She tilted her hand to one side, as if marking a line on a graph.  
  
Tah perked her antennae and stirred her drink with her straw. "The slope of corruption? Corruption as in, say, the corrosion of metal?"  
  
"Yes!" Clay clapped her hands. "You've got it! That's exactly what it's like."  
  
Tah leaned forward, highly amused by her friend's ranting. "How steep would you say Dak's slope is?"  
  
Clay glanced over to her husband, who seemed just as amused at Tah at the conversation. "Well, we didn't really date.. I'd say it's a non-factor with this one."  
  
He turned toward Tah and shook his head, smiling. "I don't know what she's talking about.." At this Clay punched him in the arm. He winced, but continued talking as he gingerly rubbed his appendage. "I'm as steady as they come."  
  
A new voice came from behind. "..in bed." Everyone at the table turned to see a middling-height man with blearing red eyes and the black uniform of a researcher. He was grinning at his recent joke.  
  
Clay rolled her eyes when she recognized who he was. She waved an arm in his general direction and explained. "This is Twaine, researcher and resident pain in the ass." She narrowed her eyes at him. "He crashes every party we marauders have."  
  
Twaine shrugged. "I love to boogie." He then caught sight of Yempt and nudged himself in his direction. "Who are you, green-eyes?" He raised one brow in a suggestive manner. Yempt sputtered at the flirtation, but before he could come up with a properly bitter response the researcher took a hold of his arms and pulled him out of his seat. "Let's dance!"  
  
Yempt couldn't help but be dragged out onto the dance floor, and when he was finally released he was so dumbfounded he could barely move. He stood uneasily as he watched Twaine move about in a strange dance. He looked around - no one was dancing like Twaine. The red-eyed researcher moved as if his joints were stiff, like a robot's. As he danced, or more appropriately jigged, he made noises in accordance with the music. They could only be categorized as noises, because he certainly wasn't singing. "Do da da do la ti da. Ra ti da la ra ti da. Roo to da da ra ti da. La la ra da ti la da."  
  
When Yempt finally came to his senses he hardened his gaze at the researcher. "What is wrong with you?"  
  
Twaine just gave him a lopsided grin. "Easy, babe. I'm love struck by your handsome bod! I simply must have you."  
  
"W-What!?!" Before Yempt could say anything more Twaine twirled him further into the mass of dancing Irkens.  
  
Tah pounded her fist on the table, cackling uncontrollably as Clay and Dak watched in amazement. Her eyes watered, and every time she happened to look back at the dance floor all her efforts at calming down were completely demolished. Knowing Yempt as she did, he getting picked up at the Entertainment Center just seemed too funny.  
  
Clay leaned toward Dak, slightly worried. "Has she ever cracked up like that before?"  
  
Dak stared at his friend with confused eyes. "Maybe once or twice.."  
  
"What's so funny?" Everyone looked up to see Red and Purple standing next to the table. Both Clay and Dak saluted them, but Tah was too far gone to respond.  
  
She tried to control herself. "Yempt - picked up - that guy!" She again exploded into a fit of laughter, but was finally able to calm herself when Purple sat beside her and wrapped one arm around her shoulders. Red rolled his eyes and sat down across from them, ordering a drink for him and his friend.  
  
"It's been two years," reminded Purple, slightly discombobulated from his recent fall and the distracting music. He wore a bandage on his forehead where he'd hit it against the wall.  
  
Tah nodded and pointed at his wound. "What happened?"  
  
"I, heh -"  
  
"He fell down, trying to get some work done early," said Red, jumping into the conversation. "Idiot. Ended up sleeping most of the day anyway." He smirked as Purple glared at him.  
  
"I'm not an idiot!"  
  
"Yes, you are."  
  
"Am not!"  
  
"Who's the one with the bandage? Huh?"  
  
Purple glowered. "That has nothing to do with being an idiot!" He was about to say more when he felt a hand cover his under the table. He smiled over at Tah, remembering who he'd come to see. "So, what's the plan now that you've come?"  
  
Tah's face became serious as the subject of work was mentioned. "Well, I don't want to talk about it here. I'll meet with both of you tomorrow, if that pleases my Tallest."  
  
At this Red shook his drink in her direction, spilling a good portion of it all over the table. "How many times do I have to tell you to drop the Tallest thing? We're at the Entertainment Center, for Irk's sake!" He placed his cup on the table and pointed at her. "You need another drink!" 


	5. Numberous Preparations

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Invader Zim.  
  
Chapter Five: Numerous Preparations  
  
"I'm sorry! I really am! I had no idea you'd get like this - you only had one drink!" Twaine worked to hold Yempt up as he said such things as this, amused yet feeling completely guilty at having gotten his new acquaintance drunk. He tried to lead Yempt along the hallway as the short, green-eyed Irken swayed about, yelling out his displeasures to the world.  
  
"That Entertainment Center was repulsive - along with the people in it. Along with you! Why are you still with me? The music was too loud -" Yempt held his head as if the noise was still pulsating through his brain. "Tah's crazy. I don't know where she gets the idea she can just kidnap me, but I'm going to file a complaint!" He raised his finger as if he were making a proclamation. "A complaint!" He then followed his proclamation with a hiccup. He wobbled a little and leaned a little more on Twaine.  
  
"Where's your room?" asked the researcher with a look of concern. However, he couldn't help but accompany his concerned glance with a grin. This new guy was SO cute!  
  
Yempt's eyes widened with some sort of distressing thought. "Oh, no you don't! I have no intentions of doing THAT with the likes of you! With the likes of anybody! Why does anybody bother with THAT when it all leads to nothing? Don't think you're going there, you sick - you sick.." Yempt was going to finish his sentence when he suddenly looked rather sick himself. Twaine held onto his companion as he gently rubbed his back, hoping he wouldn't puke all over the floor. For a moment it seemed as if he would, but after a while of standing there, Yempt swallowed hard and seemed a little better. It was obvious that he wasn't used to alcohol. He then glanced back at Twaine, his face beginning to form a scowl. "You don't fool me..I know what you want!"  
  
The researcher couldn't help but smirk. At least he'd made an impression on this new guy. He was tempted to reach out one claw and stroke his new friend's quivering antennae, wondering if it would calm him down, but decided to resist. Although he was finding Yempt's opinionated nature hopelessly irresistible, he had no intentions of taking advantage of his drunkenness. He just led the ranting Irken down the hall, hoping they would eventually run into Yempt's room.  
  
"And DON'T call me Love!"  
  
Twaine cocked one brow. "I didn't call you Love." He winked, "But I will if you want me to!"  
  
"Eh? You didn't? Well - I thought you had! And don't you know it's a waste of time? Apparently you're too stupid - yeah. Stupid and naive. Or gullible. You're just asking to have somebody lead you on! Take advantage of you! Break your squiggly pooch!"  
  
This time Twaine couldn't help himself. "Are you offering?"  
  
This time Yempt let out an aggravated growl. "No! No I'm not! Why are you still here? Let go of me!" He hiccupped again. "You're just a playboy looking to have some fun! You disgusting excuse for a Massive worker! I can see what low standards they keep!" He shoved himself away, but only succeeded in losing his balance. Twaine caught him before he fell and was thanked with an acidic glare.  
  
"Twaine?"  
  
The researcher looked to see his boss. He smiled and shrugged his shoulders, slightly lifting a very annoyed Yempt up in the process. "Hey there, Chief! Just wanted to make sure my friend here got back to his quarters safely. He just couldn't manage my magnificent charm."  
  
"That isn't true!"  
  
Tzen just smiled and nodded his head. "Well," he said in his soothing voice, "Once you're finished with that I'd like to have you do some work for me. I know it's late, but it's an urgent request."  
  
Twaine nodded and was about to head off when Yempt interrupted him. "I don't need help from some beautiful doofus! Let me go! My room's just over there!" He pointed to a door just a little way's down the hall. Twaine considered his friend for a moment before releasing the little Irken. He watched him depart and then followed his master down the hall.  
  
########################################################################  
  
Purple worked the fingers of his hands as he testily glowered down at a monitor. "What do you mean over half the marauders called in sick today?"  
  
The messenger on the other side of the monitor seemed queasy. "- that half of them called in sick today?"  
  
Purple rolled his eyes and felt a low growl in his mouth. This was all because of the gigantic party Clay had thrown the other night, and if it hadn't been in honor of Tah's return he would have been tempted to reprimand her.  
  
"Aw, let them recover," said a voice from behind. "It's not like they have anything better to do right now."  
  
Purple shut off the monitor and turned around, frowning at Red. "They could be training for the next battle - that would be better. Can't you just hear the collective hangover moans resounding from the hundreds of 'sick' marauders?"  
  
Of course no such sound could be heard, due to the fact that the marauder quarters were several levels below in a completely separate part of the ship. Still, Red tilted his head as if to listen. "Um..no. Want some early morning chips?"  
  
Purple's expression brightened. "Okay!" The two sat down at their table and began munching on a bowl of chips that had been laid out, along with an assortment of dips. Both their mouths were full when Tah walked in, her expression serious as she examined her electronic pad. It didn't even seem she knew where she was going before she glanced up from her work and looked around. She saw the Tallest and smiled at them both, though she let her gaze linger on Purple.  
  
"I'll just be a moment," she explained before she set her pad down and began crawling on the floor like an animal. She was searching every corner, every crack for something. Red and Purple politely stood as she knelt under the table, checking under its surface. They exchanged a confused glance as she stood up on a chair to check a ventilation duct. She reached up into it, causing dust to cover her glove and fall onto the floor until her eyes brightened. She pulled out a small, black device and held it in victory as she hopped off the chair onto the floor. She held out her dusty glove to show the Tallest what she had found. "It's a listening device."  
  
Red scratched his head while Purple seemed downright offended. "Someone's been listening to us! I thought this room was secure!"  
  
"It should be now," Tah said with a smile as she eyed the chips on the table. She then frowned down at her filthy glove. "Where's the nearest - er - cleansing room?" It had finally hit her how she'd just behaved and was somewhat embarrassed.  
  
Purple smiled gently at her and pointed toward a door. He watched as she headed off before turning back to Red. He just gave his companion a smile before returning to the chips and dip. Red folded his arms and rolled his eyes, deciding to state the obvious. "That was weird."  
  
"But she did find something."  
  
Red shrugged and began to attack the chips, realizing Purple had a head start on him. Purple glared at him as he watched the scarlet Tallest stuffing handfuls of chips in his mouth. "There's more where that came from, you know!"  
  
Red paused and then grinned, crumbs falling from his lips. "Oh, yeah." He glanced down at the table. "Guess we should save some for Tah too."  
  
"I think so."  
  
The door opened and Tah walked through, this time with a clean glove. As she approached she was offered to sit and eat, and agreeing to both she began to discuss business. "My Tallest -"  
  
"Red and Purple!" Red shook a fist.  
  
She smiled. "Red and Purple," her voice then flattened to a level, serious tone, "Through my investigations I've determined that the person I've been looking for is on this ship. I can't believe I didn't figure it out sooner - only makes sense he'd be here what with our resources and our communi -"  
  
"How've you been?" interrupted Purple as he pushed a bowl of dip in her direction.  
  
This question confused her for a moment. "What? Oh, Pur, I'm doing fine. I've been keeping myself busy."  
  
"Feh!" Red crossed his arms and glanced up at the ceiling. "Probably been neglecting your Reshma practice. You still suck, don't you? Don't you?" He pinned her with an accusing eye.  
  
"Huh?" Tah blinked, her militaristic façade beginning to fall away. She started as she felt something touch her knee and she peered down to see one of Purple's long fingers softly rubbing against it. She grinned and puffed up defensively. "Where would I practice with the Reshma? Besides, I've had plenty of practice with my hand to hand!" For a sheer moment the movement of Purple's finger stopped and Tah knew he was imagining in just what dangerous situations she'd be able to practice her hand to hand.  
  
Red was still making an effort too look upset, as if he'd been shunned as opposed to the Reshma. "Well, I fully expect you to take up your training again now you're here!"  
  
"Uh, as soon as my work is through. I promise! But I have to say, I was one of the better students in my Reshma class!"  
  
Red's eyes widened. "What! That's terrible!" He shook his head at the horror of it all. "THAT was considered good? Pur, we need to increase funding for Reshma instructors!"  
  
Tah popped a chip in her mouth and chewed on it as she waited for her Tallest to calm down. "As I was saying, they guy works here. I don't know who he is, but he's here and I need to find a way to catch him. I've spend the last two years chasing him down and I've realized that he's even worse then I'd originally imagined! Someone has to bring him down!" There was a passion in her voice that had never been there before, and a hidden hatred snuck deep within her heart. Purple's massaging finger stopped once again as he listened intently. "I know he's aware of who I am. He's been watching me too and I know he knows where I am." She narrowed her maroon eyes. "He's clever -" She pulled out her electronic pad and activated its screen. "I've taken measures to make this trip to the Massive seem like a visit meant to condemn some of his lesser minions. I have a list right here of people you can arrest, but it might be better for you to wait until we've cut off the head. It might take a while to search him out, so I'll have to come with some other excuses for staying, but for now this will do." She handed Red and Purple her list for them to review, but they promptly ignored it.  
  
"Just send the list to us some other time. We'll look over it then." Purple nodded at Red's suggestion.  
  
Tah shrugged and leaned back in her chair, now happily crunching on the offered chips. They were alone in the room, so she no longer felt she had to act formally around the two Tallest. Red suddenly stood. "I'm getting something to drink. Anyone want anything?" Both Purple and Tah wanted a drink, so Red went to go fetch them from the cooler. While he was gone Purple leaned in toward Tah.  
  
"Dinner in my quarters tonight?" he asked quietly.  
  
Tah nodded as Red called out from the far end of the room. "Catch!" Tah raised her arm and let a cold soda can land in her hand. Purple looked up, unready when his can came hurtling through the air. It smacked him directly in the face and he fell out of his chair, out cold. Tah gasped and knelt beside him to examine the damage as Red hovered over.  
  
"Oh - he's going to be mad at me for that." He turned back to the cooler to get a cold pack and handed it to Tah, who placed it on the unconscious Tallest's already bruised forehead. "Eh, I'd better call for some med- people."  
  
"Red.."  
  
Red paused at Tah's request. She looked up at him as she knelt down by Purple.  
  
"I was wondering if you could find somebody to train me further in hand to hand while I'm here - nothing much, but I want to be at my best."  
  
Red's expression hardened as his face became serious. "You're job is to investigate - we have marauders and warriors who do the other stuff."  
  
"No, you don't understand," she paused, biting her bottom lip, "You know what kind of situations my profession sometimes - gets me into. I just want to be ready - just in case." She smiled up at him nervously.  
  
He narrowed his eyes, sensing her tenseness. He didn't know if he could trust her, but he'd rather her be prepared if something happened. "I'll get somebody to meet you in the training room this afternoon -"  
  
########################################################################  
  
The ceiling was exceedingly bland. This is what Yempt thought as he stared up at it from his position on his bed. He frowned. He hated things that were bland, and the Massive seemed to be the epitome of that odious state. Everything was made out of the same color of metal, all the hallways looked the same, everyone wore similar uniforms, from every window was the exact same tedious view. For once he could count one thing about Food Courtia, and that was that its appearance, though disgustingly filthy in most areas, was colorful. He closed his eyes and imagined the morning view he'd once enjoyed from his crowded room, perhaps one of his only pleasures in his predictably disappointing life.  
  
He heard his door hiss and he opened his eyes to see two brilliantly shining red orbs. He squeaked and backed away, appalled that Twaine would get so close to him without any warning. "What are you doing here!" he demanded in heightened tones.  
  
"Want some lunch, Love? I'll take you to the dining hall." Twaine smirked at Yempt's expression.  
  
"What did you just call me?!" Yempt's head hurt too much to deal with such foolishness, although he certainly wouldn't have dealt with it had it not been hurting either.  
  
"Love. You asked me to last night." The handsome, red-eyed Irken winked suggestively.  
  
Yempt searched his brain, finding he couldn't remember much of the last night. He wondered if this lunatic was actually telling the truth. He gaped at his visitor before taking a deep breath. He sent Twaine a level gaze and said in his most hateful voice, "I'm not sure what I said, but I don't mean it now. Go away before I call securi-" he was playfully yanked out of his bed and set on the floor. "Will you stop that!" He froze as a teasing claw ran along his neck.  
  
"Don't be mean, my little waffle."  
  
"Waffle? Where'd you get waffle? What's wrong with you?"  
  
Twaine shrugged, "Just seemed like the thing to say. ....Let's go!" Yempt had no choice as he was pulled out of his room and directed toward the dining hall.  
  
########################################################################  
  
Purple sat holding a cold pack to his head, occasionally sending an angry glare in his co-Tallest's direction. Red didn't seem to care as he leaned back in his throne, apparently quite happy. "I don't like you..." he finally seethed.  
  
"Shut up. What are you so angry about? You've got a date."  
  
"I'm angry because you threw a stinking - hey, how did you know!"  
  
Red snickered and glanced over at his companion. "Well, I am an All Knowing Tallest, after all."  
  
Purple narrowed his eyes at Red before finally resting back in his chair, deciding to give up. Other thoughts were bothering him. "Red, I'm worried about Tah."  
  
At this Red rose a brow. "Yeah?"  
  
Purple nodded. "Yeah, you saw her this morning. She was - really into her mission. I mean, she's always been an absurdly dedicated worker, but this was different."  
  
Red nodded with full understanding. "Yeah, I saw it. She was determined. She really wants to get this guy." He again leaned back. "Though, I don't blame her - sounds like a real bastard to me!"  
  
"She might go too far - you know, do anything to get this guy. I don't know if she'll get herself hurt. I've never see her so passionate about something."  
  
"...are you sure?" Red gave Purple a naughty look just before Purple's brainfreezy splashed into his face. 


	6. Day Two on the Massive

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Invader Zim.  
  
Chapter Six: Day Two on the Massive  
  
Yempt continued to glare at Twaine as he chewed his meal. He never took his eyes off the strange Irken as the other babbled incessantly about trivial matters. "- and then he was sent to Hobo13 for his supposed training." Twaine stifled a giggle. "I'd never seen the Tallest before Clay's party, but I heard they were sore for WEEKS after he survived - even after they tried to send him into that sun!"  
  
"You know," complained Yempt moodily, "I'm only here because I'm hungry!" He indignantly shoved a spoonful into his scowling mouth.  
  
"Of course! That's why I took you here. I took one look at you and I could hear your stomach saying," he tightened his voice to a high-pitched squeal, "feeeeed meeee!"  
  
Yempt glanced away, beginning to feel somewhat uncomfortable around this weirdo. "- You're so stupid."  
  
His companion lifted a hand to his forehead dramatically. "Alas! It is so! That is why, I, Twaine, was not destined to be a mightily smart scholar, but a lowly, humble researcher!" He grappled onto his head as if it were about to explode. "My brain meats just could not handle the knowledge!"  
  
As Yempt looked around he noticed that a few amused onlookers were watching Twaine's behavior. Some giggled and turned back toward their food while others continued to watch, as if it were some kind of show. He frowned - they were apparently used to Twaine's outbursts. He rolled his eyes, not caring what the people in the dining hall thought, and turned back to Twaine. "You're a liar. If you were that dumb, you wouldn't be working on the Massive. Why do you have to be so melodramatic all the time? It doesn't get you anywhere -"  
  
Twaine ignored Yempt's sour attitude. He fluttered his eyes in mock flirtation, "So you think I'm smart then?" He seemed delighted. He leaned forward and asked jokingly, like a star-crossed lover, "Tell me more about myself, Sweet Pea."  
  
A dark green eye twitched at the name. "- Sweat Pea? Sweat PEA! Where do you come up with these names? Why don't you go chase down someone else? Do I look like I'm looking, or are you attracted by hopeless causes? Believe me, it is hopeless."  
  
"That's right!" Twaine now adopted a horrified tone. "I forgot you prefer to be called Love!"  
  
"No I don't!" Yempt shook his head despairingly. "You just don't understand, do you? I - am - not - interested. I - do - not - like - you. I - think - you - are - crazy. I think this love business is a waste of time, anyway. It's merely a pastime for losers and a tool for the manipulative." He crossed his arms and watched Twaine's reaction, feeling the slightest tinge of guilt when his companion's laughing red eyes began to falter. It wasn't long before Twaine was able to rally his spirits again, but Yempt could still see the doubt that now lingered in his expressions.  
  
"Oh, you just need to look on the brighter side of life. Just think of it! You've been taken away from Food Courtia, which you told me you hated the other night, and sent to an interesting ship full of interesting people. You were able to meet the Tallest! You have no responsibilities at the moment, so you can roam around and do what you want!"  
  
"- Go away."  
  
This time Twaine's perpetual smile fell for more than a second. He glanced around for a moment as if trying to think of something to say before grinning again, though not as broadly. "Speaking of responsibilities, I should be getting back to work now. My break is almost over and -" Twaine's voice lingered off as he lifted himself out of his seat and took his tray to the disposal unit. Yempt watched as the black-clad researcher left and began to pick at his food.  
  
########################################################################  
  
Tah secured her training boots and stood up, stretching a bit. She was more than early to meet this instructor Red had lined up for her, but she wanted to do a lot of warming up first. Although she had kept up with her laser and fighting skills, it hadn't been in a rigorous training situation. Also, she had gotten into the habit of looking around for traps and the such whenever she had a preplanned event - she'd been caught in too many 'accidents' as of late. She walked out into the training rooms and glanced about, feeling as if she were back at the Academy again. She smiled as she set to work, examining the floor for inconsistencies and the air ducts for anything strange. She checked under the training mat and examined all the equipment, but nothing turned up. Satisfied, she sat down and began doing her regular stretches. She reached out with her arms, trying to touch the toe of her boot. As she did this she happened to glance up, and for a sheer moment she thought she saw a face peeking from behind the corner - a face of a medium sized man with red eyes. She blinked, not sure whether the face she had seen was an actual person or a specter of her now paranoid imagination. Of course, it wouldn't be odd for someone to be around, that area being a public training area. She shrugged off her suspicion, taking a deep breath. She was tired of looking behind corners all the time.  
  
Besides, if she was being watched things were going according to her plans. She had to admit to herself that the trail of clues she'd followed to narrow her search to the population of the Massive had been a shaky one. She had no idea whether her leads were right and if they were, exactly who on the Massive her arch nemesis was.  
  
By now, he was her arch nemesis. He'd orchestrated so many things - the worst having been the explosion of the hatcheries, and since she'd begun her search she'd gotten to know his style of crime very well. His operations varied in type, but they were always elegantly performed, meticulously planned, and almost impossible to trace. Tah knew that this nemesis of hers knew her just as well as she did him. He'd teased her almost from the moment she started on his trial - leaving mocking hints for her, doing such petty things as stealing her boots and leaving them near a crime scene months later. Tah was sure that although he was a genius, he must be very weird.  
  
Tah let her mind drift to Yempt, although this could hardly be considered moving to a more pleasant subject. She disliked him, but she still felt sorry for him and could understand if he was going to start becoming a little bitter - more so than he already was. She had taken him away from his home and job with no warning, something that must have been confusing for a long-time waiter. She reached her arm behind her back, pulling on the muscles there. She closed her eyes for a moment and reflected that confusing as it must be, taking him with her was the only way to have kept him safe. She had no time to arrange any other protection for him and she couldn't have brought herself to just leave him to die. However, she didn't like the idea of having him with her, either. Truth to tell, she had nothing for him to do and couldn't give him the attention he probably needed. She imagined him sitting in his room, bored to death but too stubborn to find an amusement. She sighed and began to stretch out the other arm. She had tried to visit him for lunch, but he hadn't been in his room. She'd looked for him but had given up after she'd met Clay in the hall. "Well," she said inwardly to herself, "If he wasn't in his room he must be doing something -" Her guilt at leaving him alone somewhat subsided and her thoughts were distracted when someone entered the training room. She stood from her stretching and took a look at her instructor.  
  
"Don't you have more important matters to attend to, my Tallest?"  
  
"Red! Call me Red!" Her monarch approached her, no longer hovering and dressed in a training outfit. He grinned at her as he shook a playful fist at her - at least, she hoped it was playful. He crossed his arms and tried to look perturbed. "And I can't see anything more important than making sure you've got the skills it takes to protect yourself. I mean, think of me here! I'm not living with Purple if he loses you!"  
  
Tah ignored a blush that crept up her cheeks as she approached her Tallest. "This is a job for a subordinate, Sir."  
  
"Are you trying to tell a Tallest what to do?" He gave her a severe glance.  
  
"N-no, Sir-"  
  
"Red!"  
  
"No, Red. But you can't possibly mean to take time out of your day to do this, can you?"  
  
"Come on! I train every day! Besides, I'm the best in the Empire!" He pointed to himself, dripping with pride. "Who would I have teach you but the best?" He then lowered his stance into a fighting position, flexing his claws. "Now, show me what you have -"  
  
"I'm not fighting a - AHHH!" She jumped out of the way as he attacked her.  
  
########################################################################  
  
Yempt shuffled his feet as he walked down the catacomb halls of the Massive. He was looking for something to do, but couldn't think of anything he'd be interested in. He didn't like to read, so the library was useless. He didn't care to socialize, so the Entertainment Center was out of the question. He had never been talented at physical activity, so he had no wish to visit the training or recreational halls. He even wanted to avoid the observation deck and its bland view of the colorless vastness of space. For the moment he settled with wandering about, watching people as they passed him by.  
  
His walk slowed for a moment when he recognized Twaine's boss. A queasy sensation rose up in his squiggly pooch at the thought of the goofy researcher and the lunch they'd just had. He glanced away from the familiar face, but it was too late. A slow, sleepy voice addressed him, "You're Twaine's friend, aren't you?"  
  
Yempt wasn't sure how to answer the question, so he merely replied with sullen silence. The head researcher didn't seem to notice.  
  
"I hear you're working for our Miss Tah. She once was a researcher under me, you know." He nodded his round head and smiled at the memory before a thought crossed his mind. "Oh, but wait - I haven't introduced myself. Why, you're probably wondering who I am, talking to you as if I know you." He smiled and chuckled to himself.  
  
Yempt crossed his arms and raised one brow. "That's about right, and I don't necessarily 'work' for Tah."  
  
Again the jolly man ignored Yempt's comment. "I'm Twaine's superior, Tzen. I'm between shifts and was going to my quarters to have some tea. Care to join me?"  
  
Yempt had no particular urge to join this Tzen for anything, but his feet were starting to get tired at so much walking and having tea would mean an excuse to sit down. The suggestion that he might be able to find out more about his strange admirer also fluttered across his mind. He shrugged and began to follow Tzen down the passageway. Once there he looked around at the somewhat large room almost totally engulfed in plants. He frowned, noting in his dismal brain that he didn't like plants. He figured that anything that needed something as wretched as water to survive couldn't be good. He seated himself at the only table in the room as his host disappeared to get the tea things. Yempt contented himself with glaring at the numerous plants until he returned.  
  
"So, how long have you known my researcher?" asked Tzen as he placed a steaming cup on the table.  
  
Yempt stared at him as if he were a complete moron. "This is only my second day here - I met him at the Entertainment Center last night." He rolled his eyes and began to blow on his tea.  
  
Tzen nodded. "Well then, he must have taken a liking to you." He laughed when Yempt shot an angry glare up at him. "Or maybe not.?"  
  
"That's not your business." seethed Yempt contemptuously.  
  
Tzen happily ate a cookie and took a long sip from his tea. "Probably not," he smiled. "Probably not. But," he cocked one eye with amusement, "I have heard rumors of a similar strain about one of our Almighty Tallest, though."  
  
Yempt rolled his eyes, disgusted that he was being used as a source of gossip. "I'm not interested in that sort of thing," he sneered as he glanced away. "I haven't been paying attention!"  
  
Tzen shrugged mildly and took another sip from his tea. "From the sound of it, you haven't known Tah very long. Where did you meet?"  
  
This time Yempt felt more responsive. He made an exasperated sound as he glanced up at the ceiling. "I was a waiter in Food Courtia and she decides to run off with me like some - person who would do that! I don't care what you think about her, but I think she's gone crazy with whatever mission she thinks she has to accomplish. See, there was some death trap waiting for me at my home after I gave her a piece of paper she dropped, and suddenly there were lasers shooting from my cleansing room!" He brought his hand to his chin and began to reluctantly continue, "I suppose she just wants to protect me - but I still don't care for being forcefully dragged off planet like a smeet in training!" He took an angry slurp from his tea and banged the cup down, almost spilling its contents on the table.  
  
Tzen nodded with what seemed to be understanding. "She can get carried away at times - especially recently." The older Irken's eyes misted over with thought for a moment before nodding and returning to the conversation. "Yes, she's been becoming more anxious."  
  
Yempt considered this man and wondered if he knew what the word 'anxious' meant. He narrowed his eyes. "Why's a head researcher care about her? She used to work for you, but she doesn't anymore. Just stupid to worry about her now - a waste of time."  
  
The head researcher turned in his seat and examined Yempt as if he's just seen him for the first time in his life. "Hmmm - you're unoccupied on this ship, aren't you?"  
  
Yempt rolled his dark green eyes. "Duh."  
  
"Well, maybe I can -"  
  
"No. I don't want help from you. I want to figure out what's wrong with everybody on this idiotic ship. The Tallest are a couple of goofballs, Tah's obsessed with finding this 'mastermind' of hers, and -" he pointed at the man across from him, "- I don't trust you."  
  
########################################################################  
  
Tah wobbly walked over to her bed, her eyes caressing its soft surface. She fell upon it and quickly squirmed her way under the covers. The day had been wonderful but exhausting. It felt so good to see her old friends again and to experience some semblance of a normal life, but now her body ached from the exercise Red had forced her through that afternoon. It was true that he was a far better fighter than her, and he had taught her a few tricks, but now she felt like she couldn't move.  
  
Earlier that night she had dined with Purple. She closed her eyes remembering the event. He had greeted her with a dinner laid out on his table. The meal was exquisite and Tah mused that the Massive chefs had really outdone themselves. They hadn't mentioned her case at all, or even much of the last two years, as if that time had never passed. They'd talked and laughed, and then she relaxed in his couch while he played his K'dor for her. When he'd finished he sat with her - each sporting a brainfreezy, of course, and they spoke for a little more before he reminded her what it felt like to be kissed and touched. She cuddled into her pillows and made a contented sound in her throat - she loved him so much...  
  
She found herself walking down the halls of a deserted alley, seemingly endless with two stained walls closed in on each side. She placed all her effort into walking in the exact middle of the alley so there would be no chance of brushing up against those disgustingly filthy walls. She walked for what seemed to be a long time as mist began to surround her feet. The mist began to rise, and soon it seriously impeded her sight. She squinted, still determined to walk in the center of the passageway. The thought of simply stopping never occurred to her. She walked until she reached a dead end, or rather, a dead end marked with a brilliant, yellow door. A shiver went down her spine as she began to sense danger, although she had no idea where the danger could come from. She wrapped her brown gloved hand around the primitive doorknob of the door and stepped inside a decrepit-looking house. There didn't seem to be a straight edge in the place, everything seemed tilted and askew. She tilted her head to one side, wondering if that would make the room strait. She tilted her head until her neck hurt. When it became apparent that nothing she could to would straitened things, she straitened herself and began to walk about. Her eyes darted about as she looked for evidence - certain that this was a crime scene. All the furniture was either turned on end or ripped apart, but this didn't bother her. She even made a point of tipping over the only chair left standing. As she glanced down at her handiwork her antennae picked up a noise. It was sudden and high pitched, like the cry of something young and helpless. She followed the cry with an impending sense of dread, feeling a cold sweat ooze from her body. She rubbed her forehead, but that didn't help to remove her perspiration. She gave up and continued to follow the noise through the rooms of destruction. Her feet began to feel heavy and her steps became slow and forced. By the time she reached the last room she felt as if she were walking in slow motion. Slowly, she looked up and felt her mouth contort with terror. The crying had stopped, but it had led her to a young girl swinging from the ceiling by a length of rope. The girl was of a different race, one with pure white skin, large black eyes, and hair so light in color it was practically translucent. She didn't seem to notice that she had been hung as she stared back at Tah with her large, round, black eyes. "Daddy -" said the girl in a sad, whimsical voice as she began to shut her eyes for what Tah knew would be the last eternal time.  
  
She woke up standing in the middle of her room, surrounded by chaos. Her pillows had been flung across her room, her single chair and table were tilted on the floor, and everything that had neatly sat atop her dresser had been thrown to one side. She blinked as she shakily began to wipe the sweat from her brow and even her haggard breath.  
  
Yempt turned over in his bed. The screaming from Tah's room next door hand stopped just before he'd decided to see what all the racket was about. He cursed silently before closing his eyes once more and finally falling to sleep. 


	7. The Respective Plans

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Invader Zim.  
  
Chapter Seven: The Respective Plans  
  
Red hovered into the transmission room with a bag of cookies in one hand and a ball and paddle in the other, ready to start a new day leading the mighty Irken Empire. His co-Tallest had already arrived, being the sort of person who was early for everything, lying contently on his throne. Red snickered as he took his own seat and began to stuff cookies in his mouth handfuls at a time. He leaned back and glanced over to Purple. "We should have Tah see us today," he commented, crumbs spewing as he spoke.  
  
Purple nodded excitedly. "Yeah! We should do that!"  
  
Red narrowed his eyes as he brought another handful of cookies up to his mouth. "- Would you like to know what for?" His voice was somewhat curt in tone, but there was still a hint of amusement lingering beneath.  
  
Purple's cheeks flushed. "To - ah - to have her - report! That's it!" He grinned at himself as he began to eye Red's cookie bag.  
  
Red noticed the action and held the bag close to his chest. No one but no one was stealing his breakfast cookies. He nodded at Purple's response. "Yes, to have her report." He rolled his eyes. "You do want to know what her plan is, don't you? Every day that passes is another where this dangerous guy roams free - in our ship!" He waved his bag of cookies around for emphasis, and Purple took this chance to grab them away from him. He hovered out of his chair and began to flee from Red as the angered Tallest chased him about the room. He giggled as he began to gleefully scarfed down the rest of the cookies.  
  
"Those cookies are MINE!" yelled Red as he lunged at his friend, knocking them both on the floor. He wrestled the bag away only to find Purple had finished off its contents. He scowled at his companion, who proceeded to smile up at him smugly. "- I'm going to get you back," he warned before hefting himself up off from atop his friend. None of the workers had seemed to notice the squabble, as they were used to their Almighty leaders doing that sort of thing.  
  
Once they were seated in their thrones once again, an evil grin spread across Red's face. He glanced toward Purple, who was busy cleaning cookie crumbs out of his teeth. "So," he asked in his most pervasive voice, "Tell me about last night. Did you ask her?"  
  
Purple's eyes widened a bit, but otherwise showed no signs of tension. "What do you mean?"  
  
Red pulled out his ball and paddle and began to play with it. He sat their, hitting the ball rhythmically for a while before he continued. "You know what I mean. Did you?" He then grinned over at Purple, watching his friend fidget. He glanced down at his empty cookie bag and thought how sweet revenge was. "If you did, I deserve to know."  
  
Purple glanced away. "Noooo - I didn't ask her anything." He laughed nervously, "I don't know what you mean."  
  
Red chuckled darkly to himself before leaping from his chair, once again pinning Purple to the ground. He laughed mercilessly as Purple screamed and shrieked. He began to playfully beat Purple over the head as he tried to sound frustrated through his laughter. "What do you mean you don't know? It's been so long, she's finally here, and she's almost through with her mission! Can't you get a hint?"  
  
"Leggo of me! Leggo!" Red cackled at the requests of his friend until he heard someone clear his throat. He looked over his shoulder to see the orange-eyed Prime Admiral standing there, cold and stiff as ever. Red stood up, finally letting Purple catch his breath. The scholar stood up and gave his companion a customary glare before turning his attention to the Admiral.  
  
"Tark. We haven't scheduled a meeting with you. Is something wrong?"  
  
The Prime Admiral saluted sharply and rigidly placed his hands behind his back. "No, Sirs. I have a request!" His voice was gruff from years of having a position of military command.  
  
"Well?" asked Purple, crossing his arms. "What is it?"  
  
Tark glanced away, obviously uncomfortable asking for something non- military related. "I understand that Tah has boarded the ship." He spoke her name as if it were some obscenity. "I would - appreciate it - if I could arrange a meeting with her. My daughter -" he trailed off, clearing his throat, and the Tallest knew what he wanted.  
  
"Certainly," said Red. "We'll have Tah sent over, and you can go fetch your daughter." He nodded as the Prime Admiral saluted once again and headed out the door. He then pointed at a random worker, "You! More cookies!"  
  
########################################################################  
  
The dining hall was unusually quiet. Instead of crowded tables and the constant buzz of conversation there were scattered Irkens talking mildly in hushed tones, unwilling to break the peacefulness of the morning. At one of the lonely tables sat three people, Tah, Clay, and Dak. Dak sat on Tah's lap, completely unashamed of the closeness of their relationship, while the marauder sat across from them. They were up so early in order to spend some time with the extremely short communications officer before he had to rush to work. He happily shared off Tah's plate, hardly making a dent in her mountain of food.  
  
"How did you pick him up?" asked Clay groggily. She was not used to being up at this time of day.  
  
Tah shook her head. "It wasn't his fault. He was nice enough to hand me something I dropped, and someone must have seen him do it because there was a death trap waiting at his house. He's lucky he survived, but I couldn't have left him to fend for himself in Food Courtia. I don't know what might have happened to him."  
  
Clay sniffed in disgust as she bit into a sausage. "Him? Nice?" She rolled her bright pink eyes.  
  
"Is he still in danger?" asked Dak, who was still relatively unfamiliar with Yempt's character.  
  
Tah shook her head. "No, I don't think he's much of a target now. See, it was one of the subordinates that targeted him, and now he's off Food Courtia no one is interested. I mean, I'm sure the guy I'm looking for knows about him, but I'm willing to bet he'd rather leave Yempt alive for the moment. He doesn't like to kill people unless they're a real threat - he never knows if they'll become useful to him later on." Tah shrugged and shoved an entire biscuit in her mouth, slathered in a butter-like substance.  
  
Dak shifted his weight on Tah's lap. "You must know this guy pretty well," he commented proudly. "You're very perceptive."  
  
"Thank you, Huk'ra!" Tah gave Dak a little squeeze.  
  
He took a small sip from his coffee. "Tell me a little about what you've been doing. You never spoke of what you really did while you were gone." He wiggled his tiny legs with the anticipation of an interesting story.  
  
Tah thought for a moment. "Well, I actually dreamt about one of my cases last night... I'd seen something on the news about this string of bombings, and something about it sounded like it was the work of my guy, so I decided to investigate on it. The bombings were occurring on a planet called Phe'tra where a race of fair-haired, fair-skinned people lives. It was easy to identify the bomber, but not his motive. Seems he'd retired from the bombing business, but when he was needed he had no choice but to obey or his little girl would be injured. But still, he was an honest man and had full intentions of telling the authorities who was responsible after the mess was through. That was when he was framed for the hanging death of his daughter. I tried to prove him innocent, but Phe'tra justice comes very quickly. I just didn't have the time....." She blinked at the disgusted faces of Dak and Clay. "Oh! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to tell something gruesome - it's just what came to mind. You know, because I'd dreamt about it.."  
  
Dak frowned and patted Tah's leg with affection. "That must have been awful."  
  
Tah shrugged. "Well, I'm looking forward to the day when I won't have to do things like that. If I had known I was going to do what I've done these past years, then I wouldn't have been half as excited as I was when I first began my investigation." She tried to sound cheerful.  
  
Clay watched with half shut eyes, too lethargic to say much. She slid out of her seat, holding her cup in one hand. "I'm getting more to drink. Anyone need anything?"  
  
"No dear," answered Dak. He looked up at Tah. "How about you?" Tah shook her head, so Clay headed off to refill her drink. Once she had gone a few feet Dak grinned at Tah and said to her with a slight twinkle in his lavender eye, "She's sweet, isn't she?"  
  
Apparently Clay had heard him. "What did you say I was?" she called from across the cafeteria.  
  
Dak jumped in Tah's lap. "Strong! I said you were strong!"  
  
Clay nodded. "I thought so." She then turned back to her task of getting a drink and was on her way back to the table when a couple of Irkens addressed her, a retired Invader and a marauder - both females who hovered perhaps two inches over Clay's head in height.  
  
"Looks like your shorty husband likes to hang out with tall women now, Clay?" This was said by the sneering marauder.  
  
The marauder's Invader friend turned to her. "That's what you get when you give shorties the time of day - they get overconfident." Then they both turned toward Clay, making a point to look /down/ at her.  
  
Clay gave them both a cocky grin as her eyes shone with anger. "I'm the only one who gets to call him short!" She lost no time in attacking the two females, first taking out the more dangerous marauder with one swift punch to the head and then lunging at the Invader, pinning her to the ground before kicking her across the polished floor. She flexed her muscles in the show of might before returning to the table, smiling and a little more awake.  
  
Tah watched her friend return with an expression of fearful apprehension while Dak contained nothing but a look of total admiration. She set her drink back at her place before walking around the table to Tah and Dak's side. She reached over and kissed Dak deeply and wrapped her antennae around his with possessive ferocity so everybody might see. Tah just sat there in surprise, Dak still sitting on her lap.  
  
The scene ended when something slammed into Tah's head. She winced and picked up a round, metal ball repeating the words, "Message for Tah! Message for Tah!" She glared down at the round, black object.  
  
Clay finally broke her kiss and grinned up at her friend. "I know what you're thinking," she said with a slight air of superiority.  
  
Tah blinked at her. "What?"  
  
"Why do those message balls ALWAYS have to hit you in the head?!"  
  
Tah rolled her eyes and activated the ball. Its message came in a metallic, automated voice. "Immediate presence required in the main transmission room!" Once the message had been delivered the ball hovered back into the air and sped away. Tah blinked as Dak jumped off her lap. She shrugged and stood up.  
  
"Well, I guess I'd better get going. Dak, Clay, I'll see you guys soon." She smiled at the two of them before she headed off to see what her Tallest wanted from her. Upon arriving the first person she noticed was the overbearing Prime Admiral who she'd helped throne into the containment center. She stiffened a little, remembering the incident, and approached him. "I see you've been restored to your former glory, admiral," she said, hoping the harsh man wouldn't be too angry at her.  
  
On the contrary, he seemed somewhat congenial. "The Tallest had no reason to deny me after my innocence was proven. That's all thanks to you, Hive drone."  
  
Tah started at the name he'd called her. She vaguely wondered if Tark had just managed to tell a joke. Before she could think too far into the matter, however, a lovely woman appeared at the admiral's side. She did not stand at her full height and glanced around shyly. She finally directed her gaze at Tah and smiled. "You must be Tark's daughter."  
  
The woman nodded, but Tah was confused. This woman was wearing the uniform of a historian. "I thought you were a pilot -"  
  
"She was, and a damn good one!" answered Tark with fatherly pride. "But you know how war is - she needed a quieter job." The woman inched closer to her father, affectionately holding his stiff arm as if she might fly away without some support. "She wanted to meet you - you proved my innocence, allowing me to take back my proper place." He puffed up, showing off his military regalia.  
  
Tah scratched her head nervously. "Well, I was the one who sent you to prison in the first place..."  
  
Tark waved a hand, as if that point wasn't important. "Doing you job! Can't blame you for doing your job! Because of you -" he glanced down at the woman hanging off of him, "She was transferred to the Massive's medical center after you left - all because of what happened."  
  
Tah nodded at the once intimidating admiral. "Well, I'm glad she won't be used as a source of bribery again."  
  
The woman smiled at Tah in thanks. At that moment a door slid opened and the two Tallest hovered in. Red took one glance at the scene and leaned toward Purple, nudging him. "Isn't that cute!"  
  
########################################################################  
  
Yempt listened to the sound of his footsteps as he participated in his new pastime, wandering about aimlessly through the Massive. For some reason he was more depressed then usual, but he blamed this on the fact he'd been stripped from his job and forced into a new environment. He was bored without an assignment, and he'd never bothered to develop any interests while he was not working - claiming they were a useless waste of time.  
  
The sound of many claws clicking against keyboards sounded in the distance, and Yempt unconsciously followed that sound and found himself staring into the open door of a round room. Within was a round table where numerous people all dressed in black worked on their monitors. Yempt blinked. Black uniforms? He searched around and saw Twaine bent over one of the work stations, silently typing something. It was surprising to see Twaine without some goofy expression - he looked almost serious. Yempt began to back away, but he was too late to escape notice. The researcher glanced up and saw him, letting his friendly mouth stretch into a wide grin. Yempt grunted to himself, upset to realize that the smile was forced. He backed away and began to head down the hall. A shadow came beside him and he shuddered with frustration.  
  
"My Love has come to see me?" asked Twaine in his most melodramatic tone. Yempt didn't respond, so he continued, though not quite as enthusiastically as when they had first met. "I'm happy. It was getting boring in there, listening to myself type away. I can't believe I'm so boring!"  
  
"You're not happy or boring."  
  
A surprised look, a real expression of surprise as opposed to an artificial one, spread across Twaine's features. He watched Yempt carefully as they walked down the corridor, but the former waiter merely looked strait ahead. "Why don't you think I'm not happy?" he finally asked in a small voice.  
  
Yempt shook his head. "I can tell. Here I thought I had found one person who could be content with life, and then it turns out he's plagued with the same depression as the rest of us."  
  
Twaine let his shoulder's slump. "I'm not happy," he mumbled before changing his tone again. "But," he said with his optimistic, perky voice, "I used to be, and I will be again! The problem is that I just don't know what Tzen is -" He suddenly stopped himself and glanced around with sudden terror. His back muscles tightened with fear as he began to quicken his pace. Yempt had to jog to keep up.  
  
"Will you slow down? It's like you don't know you're walking with anybody!" yelled the short, green-eyed Irken angrily. "Now, what was it you were going to say? You aren't going to back out on me now!" He grabbed Twaine's sleeve and spun him around. "What were you going to say about Tzen?"  
  
Twaine glanced away, his brilliant red eyes faltering. "I can't tell you."  
  
"You are going to tell me. What's wrong with you? You followed me out here, and now you won't talk to me. I don't understand you at all! You're such a weirdo - a loser. You've followed me around like a lost puppy ever since you met me in the Entertainment Center, and now you're avoiding me like I have brain worms! What happened to you?"  
  
Twaine was now backed completely to the wall, squirming apprehensively as Yempt ranted. He swallowed hard once before shakily looking around. There was no one else in the passage, so he slowly turned his gaze toward his disgruntled friend. "It - it's nothing. Nothing that seems - important. It's just - just that Tzen's been asking me to do some strange things - follow people - check on things. I don't know why he's making me do these things - they seem harmless enough, but I just don't know." He lowered his head, shaking it a bit. His next words came out as a whisper. "I can't tell you more, but tonight - tonight I'm going to find out. 


	8. The Makeout Session

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Invader Zim.  
  
Chapter Eight: The Makeout Session  
  
"We are not using you as bait!"  
  
Tah shut her eyes in frustration as she sat in a chair with Red and Purple hovering above her. Their disapproval at her recently given report was palpable. "I wouldn't put it like that, my Tallest. I'd say I'm waiting until he does something to reveal himself."  
  
Purple began to pace worriedly, wringing his hands. Red stayed where he was, arms folded tightly in front of his armored torso. He glared down at Tah with his fearsome eyes. "It's not acceptable no matter how you put it, Tah!" If his foot wasn't dangling in mid-air he would have tapped it.  
  
"There's no alternative," she explained. "I don't know who this guy is, only where he is. He and I have been going back and forth ever since the Yir incident. He knows where I am at all times and what I'm doing. Me being here - apparently just hanging out at the Massive - should be driving him crazy." She smiled with a hint of pride. "I've stopped so many of his plans - become a real inconvenience for him. As of yet I've proven indestructible, but now the temptation will be too great, while I am right here, under his very antennae!" She looked up pleadingly at her Tallest, but Red only darkened his scowl.  
  
He turned to Purple, who was now nervously stuffing crackers into his mouth. "Get over here, Pur! And get me some of those too!"  
  
Purple nodded, bringing a box of crackers with him. He handed it to Red as he glanced down at Tah, obviously disturbed at her plan. "You're waiting for him to attack you -" he miserably stated.  
  
"And that's why you wanted me to further train you!" Red shook a fist, clutching the cracker box in his other arm.  
  
Purple turned to Red, surprised. "You were training her?"  
  
His co-Tallest shrugged. "Yeah, I guess you were unconscious when she asked me." He consumed another handful of crackers.  
  
Tah cradled her head in her hand, wondering how she was going to get them to understand. She hadn't been looking forward to telling them that she just wanted to sit and wait until her arch enemy did something to her, but this kind of manipulation was the only way she was going to get anywhere. She glanced up to Purple, who was watching her with a concerned gaze. He absently touched her antenna where she'd taken a laser blast for him on Divastis and hardened her expression. "My Tallest, I'm sorry if you don't agree with my plan, but it's the only thing I can think of. If there was another way, I'd do it. This is my last resort - but one I have to take. If I can get this guy once and for all, the universe will be such a better place, and I'll finally be able to go back to doing something normal for a living! Forgive me, my Tallest, I have enjoyed being your Chief Investigator, but the excitement has turned to fear and stress. Once this is over, I'll be asking for a new assignment from the Control Brain."  
  
Neither of the Tallest smiled, but they each seemed a little less tense. "That's good," said Red to Purple, who was still wringing his hands.  
  
Purple glanced toward the floor, still discontent. "That's if she doesn't get killed..." He turned his back and hovered a few feet away, his head somewhat lowered. "Tah, you're excused."  
  
Tah glanced at Red who shrugged at his friend's reaction. "Yes, my Tallest," she said as she stood up and silently walked away.  
  
That night Purple was still thinking about her report. She'd described her enemy's organization in scrupulous detail, and he was still having troubles conceiving the magnitude of the thing. He'd even managed to overthrow entire governments when it suited his needs. Purple realized that this man was responsible for a good portion of all unsolved crimes in that section of the galaxy, and he was none too happy about it. Someone as intelligent as this criminal must be would certainly be a formable opponent for his love, and he shuddered to think of anything happening to her.  
  
He'd made his way to the library, a place that had always managed to calm his nerves. This time it didn't work, and he could feel a tension headache coming on. He rubbed his temples as he hovered by, making his way to his reserved area. However, something seen from the corner of his eye made him stop. Tah was there, walking about with a dazed expression. He cocked one brow as he watched. She didn't seem to have any firm direction, and even managed to clumsily nick a few tables as she wandered about. "Sleepwalking..." he diagnosed as he hovered in her direction. He placed one hand on her shoulder and looked into her half-shut eyes. "Tah, are you awake?"  
  
"I want the Cheetos in the bag!" she insisted.  
  
He grinned at her and began to herd her toward his reserved area - the very least he could do was make sure she was safe. He directed her toward his couch and turned her around to face him. He lightly pushed her down and she sat. "What's the dookie with that?" she mumbled as he lifted her legs up so she would lie down. He knelt beside her, gently stroking one of her antennae with one claw. As he did this a smile spread across her face as she leaned closer toward his hand. "Purrr..."  
  
Tah scrunched her eyes as she began to awaken. Confusion began to set into her mind. Wherever she was, it was much more comfortable then her bed. She lifted her eyelids and sat up, blinking. "How'd I get here?!?" She was lying on the couch in the library that belonged to Purple and her feet were resting on his lap as he read a book.  
  
He turned and smiled at her. "You were sleepwalking and walked all the way to the library." He affectionately placed a hand on her ankle as if it were some sort of arm rest.  
  
She turned her head from side to side, still not fully awake. "Ehh...what time is it?" She rubbed her head in befuddlement.  
  
The lights were dim in the library, a portable lighting unit the only thing brightening the area they were in. "Middle of the night," he replied casually.  
  
Tah groggily sat up and glanced at what Purple'd been reading. She'd supposed it would have been some policy or speech that needed revising, the way he was, but it turned out to just be an Irken play. She leaned close to him, touching the book with her gloved claws. "I can't think of the last time I've been able to do any pleasure reading..."  
  
Purple wrapped one arm around her back, that being the most convenient place for it. "You shouldn't work so hard."  
  
She grinned over at him. "Speak for yourself - if you didn't do so much Red wouldn't be able to get away with slacking so much."  
  
"Well -" Purple shrugged and leaned back into the comfortable couch, happy to sit there with Tah resting against his arm. She, however, seemed to have other plans. Still somewhat drunken from sleep, Tah lifted one foot so she was sitting on it. This propped her up far enough for her head to be on the same level as Purple's. She didn't give him a chance to ask her what she was doing before she took a gentle hold of his head and began to kiss the base of his closest antenna. "Tah!" he whispered as her lips came into contact with his sensitive organ. She continued to kiss it, occasionally massaging it with the tip of her pointed tongue. The Tallest could only sit there with wide eyes as she threw off one glove and ran a bare claw down the side of his neck. "Tah - I -" was all it seemed his mouth could say. He glanced down to realize his hands were shakily working to remove his hand guards. Once they were free he turned on her, grabbing her shoulders as he pulled her close. She quickly leaned forward, kissing him directly. For a moment he was pushed to the side of the couch before a serge of hormones began to throb through his body. He made a low sound deep in his throat as he pushed her backwards, claiming her kiss for his own. Their antennae wound together, causing them both to moan. His left hand continued to hold onto her shoulder as his right one frantically reached behind her back. His fingers searched around until he found a special button on her back pod. It floated off her body and landed somewhere as he reached under the hole in her shirt with his claws and began to teasingly rub around the metal ring where her pod attached itself. She gasped and involuntarily arched her back as he did this. He took advantage of her squirming body and shifted his weight, causing more of his frame to rest on top of her panting body. He brought his legs up on the couch so he might intertwine them with hers. He began to kiss and nibble on her neck as her gloveless hand reached up to stroke one of his antennae that were still laced with her own.  
  
"Hey, Pur. I was looking for you and the computer said you were here. What are you doing so late at -" Red stopped in his tracks, his eyed widening at the sight before him. His claws loosened their grip around the electronic pad he was holding and it fell unceremoniously to the floor. Purple and Tah turned to look at him at the same time, each with hints of violet coloring their faces.  
  
########################################################################  
  
The door slid open, disturbing Yempt as he pulled on his final boot. He glanced up and frowned. "Don't you know how to knock?" he asked as Twaine hurriedly walked into the room and sat in Yempt's only chair. "Feh - aren't you going to call me something strange like your little cupcake, or was that just a phase?" The former waiter was about to complain about how he didn't care to have visitors barge in on him in the morning when he saw the look on Twaine's face. Something was seriously wrong. He tried to strain the sarcasm out of his voice, but it didn't completely work. "Find something interesting about Tzen last night?"  
  
Twaine lowered his head, almost as if in shame. "He caught me."  
  
"Well, that's what you get. Did he seem angry?"  
  
Twaine shook his head slowly. "He never minds anything..."  
  
Yempt narrowed his eyes, placing his hands on his hips. "Then what's your problem?"  
  
Twaine burst into tears.  
  
//MAN! What a short chapter! 


	9. The Feeling of Fear

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Invader Zim.  
  
Chapter Nine: Feelings of Fear  
  
Tah hummed a tune as she marched toward to observation deck. Her plan required her to look like she was taking a break, so she saw no reason why she shouldn't take one. In her hand she held a music disk she'd borrowed from Dak and she was looking forward to watching the stars as she listened to the melodies. She'd heard the Massive would be passing by a nebula that morning, and she didn't want to miss it.  
  
Before she could go, however, she wanted to swing by her quarters and change her cloths. Since she had spend a good part of the night in the library, she hadn't had a chance to change and she was beginning to feel somewhat grungy. She hurried toward her chambers, pausing slightly when she saw a small smudge on her door. She stared at it for a moment before squaring her shoulders and ordering the door to open. The explosion made her fly limply down the hall -  
  
########################################################################  
  
Yempt walked alongside Twaine as they made their way to the researcher's quarters. For some reason, Twaine just happened to have the day off. This automatically made Yempt suspicious, although his companion insisted that Tzen had nothing to do with the way he was acting. He wondered if it was because of how he'd treated him the other day, but then he reminded himself he didn't care about things like that. He followed the usually cheerful researcher because he was interested in why he was acting so strangely - that was what Yempt kept repeating in his head.  
  
Since the previous night when he had burst into tears in Yempt's room, Twaine had reverted to being even more annoying than usual. He gleefully hummed, bobbing his head as he walked to his room. When they arrived, he immediately flopped on his bed, reaching back to support his head with his arms. Yempt glanced around, not sure what to make of his companion's room. It was clean, but was also full of all sorts of strange things most Irkens wouldn't bother having. Posters lined the walls, small decorative figurines sat on his desk, and little white lights were hung from the ceiling. Yempt stopped at the foot of Twaine's bed, where a large, obnoxious hat was hung on the post. "This is - colorful," he commented as he crossed his arms and peered about.  
  
Twaine slightly lifted his head. "You like my room? Oh, you're too nice to me, Sweetness." He smiled as he received a scorching glare.  
  
Yempt stared at the other bed in the room, neatly made and abandoned. "No one will live with you, you're so weird."  
  
Twaine sat up on his bed. "No, no." His voice was slightly more serious. "My roommate was a marauder - named Wes. Real fun guy, but in the last invasion..." He seemed sad for a moment as he continued to stare at the empty bed. "He was a friendly guy." He smiled again and turned to Yempt. "Friendly as a peach!"  
  
Yempt pursed his lips in thought. "I'm sorry to hear about this Wes," he eventually said sullenly. "He's how you started going to the marauder parties."  
  
Twaine shrugged. "I told him how I liked to party, and he knew where the parties were! I haven't been assigned a new roomy yet, but I'm sure my next one will be just as peachy friendly!" The researcher made an effort to show his excitement by giving himself a tight hug.  
  
Yempt grunted as he walked around the room. He stopped at Twaine's desk and held out one of the many figurines. It was a simple glass ball, but there seemed to be something cloudy inside. Billows of red, orange, blue, and pink swirled about in a dazzling display. For a moment Yempt found himself mesmerized. It reminded him of the sunrise on Food Courtia before he remembered where he was every morning. He grunted and set the ball down, harshly but not so as to break it. "You and this Wes guy had something going, didn't you?"  
  
Twaine laughed. "He was nice as a peach, and liked to party, but he was strait as a line." He held out his arm with his claws extended stiffly as a visual. His eyes twinkled at the thought of his friend. "It was all I could do to keep him from bringing his girlfriends over." He then gave Yempt an unmistakable look.  
  
Yempt took one defensive step back, narrowing his eyes. "I am /not/ as nice as a 'peach.' I /don't/ like to party." His voice was as acidic as it had been when he'd informed Twaine that he didn't like him.  
  
Twaine leaned back onto his bed. "I know." This time his voice was not as strong and not able to hide the worry that was underlining everything he did since the night he'd cried. His generally happy mouth turned into a frown.  
  
Again Yempt narrowed his eyes. "What did you find when you hacked into your boss's computer? Tzen has done something to you," he observed stubbornly. "I don't like him."  
  
"You don't like anybody," softly mumbled Twaine, perhaps not expecting Yempt to hear.  
  
Yempt stared down at his boots as he ground his teeth together. He hated talking about emotional things, especially when the other person was determined on keeping secrets. Yet, there was something seriously wrong with Twaine, and he could see it despite the shroud of cheerfulness the playful Irken surrounded himself with. He grumbled to himself - people always told him he saw the worst in everything. He cleared his throat. "Well, I can see you're just going to be a secretive ass. If you won't tell me what's bothering you, then I see no reason to stay. Never really cared anyway..." He turned to leave and was about to open the door when a hand on his shoulder stopped him. He turned to see Twaine, his deep red eyes quivering with fear and apprehension.  
  
"I've done something horrible..." he admitted in a shaky voice. He covered his face with his hands and his shoulders began to heave with his sobbing. "So horrible...."  
  
"Gya!" Yempt was hit in the head with a black message probe. He caught it and glared down at it. "What is this monstrosity?!" he complained as he massaged his head. It repeated in electronic words, "Message for Yempt. Message for Yempt." He automatically pushed the button that would identify him and release the message. "Your presence is requested in the infirmary. Report to the infirmary immediately." The ball then flew out of the former waiter's hand and sped off.  
  
Twaine shuddered into a greater sob as he heard the message. He could barely stand from his despair. Yempt took his sleeve and pulled him over to the bed, doing his best to not seem too affectionate. Twaine sat on the bed, still crying into his hands. Yempt backed away and looked at him. "I'll be back," he assured in a bland voice before he turned to leave.  
  
Yempt marched towards the infirmary wondering why he of all Irkens would be sent there. He hadn't figured Tah would care enough about him to call for him if anything ever happened to her, but he didn't really know anyone else on the ship. He made his way to the check-in desk and was sent to one of the small medical rooms. Indeed, Tah was lying there hooked up to a number of beeping machines. Yempt was shocked to discover that she wore no shirt, but most of her body was covered in stark white bandages. A number of small scrapes and bruises covered what skin was visible. "What happened to you?" he asked after a moment of looking her over.  
  
She lifted her head to look at him. Yempt raised a brow when he realized she could barely keep her dark maroon eyes open due to swelling and fatigue. "Yempt," she said weakly. "I didn't know if you'd come..." She tried to smile.  
  
Yempt scoffed. "I'm flattered at your lack of faith," he replied in a dry tone.  
  
She sighed at his sarcasm and leaned her head back down. "He knows I'm here and is teasing me. There was an explosion in my room. The blast wasn't one meant to kill."  
  
"Are you sure?" Yempt eyed her injuries, concluding that whatever had hit her must have had deadly potential.  
  
"Yes, I'm sure. I know him. He's through with merely trying to get me out of his way. It's been personal for a long time, and when we finally meet eachother, the final solution is going to be determined by one of our hands. I'll kill him, or he'll kill me."  
  
"...why did you call for me?"  
  
Tah adjusted herself slightly before replying, apparently somewhat uncomfortable. "I know who set the trap - someone being manipulated by my enemy. I've made sure I'm the only one who will investigate the explosion, and when I do I'll make sure I'll come up with nothing."  
  
Yempt gave her a look that displayed just how stupid he thought she was. "You're going to hide the evidence of who placed the bomb? Why the Irk? What kind of two-bit investigator are you, anyway?"  
  
"It wasn't his fault. I don't want him to get into trouble. Plus, if he's interrogated I have a feeling he won't be trusted to hold his tongue - we may find him dead. He's being manipulated. I don't know how - but he's not the criminal type."  
  
Yempt rolled his eyes in frustration. "But WHO is this mysterious bomber what bombs your room? You think he'll go for me too?"  
  
Tah smiled faintly to herself, as if thinking of some private joke. "I can't tell Dak or Clay because they're so loyal. They would want to eliminate the danger to me, so I'm sure they wouldn't hesitate telling the Tallest - even if I told them not to. Such good friends -"  
  
"The NAME?! Are you building suspense to create some glorious sense of drama in your life? You're such a loser..." He folded his arms and glanced away moodily.  
  
"You have to protect him. Make sure no one sees that he's the one who did this. You'll be my assistant, won't you? Just for the time being. I know you don't like me..."  
  
"I don't know if I'll help you. Just tell me who it is and I'll think about it."  
  
Tah relaxed her body as she leaned her head deeper into her pillow. "Twaine set the bomb."  
  
"Are you out of your mind?! I think your nightmares have started affecting your brain, TAH! Twaine wouldn't do something like that. He's a goofy guy who likes to joke around and have fun. He's not a killer! He's one of the most optimistic, happy, joyful, colorful -" Yempt paused as the words Twaine had tearfully spoken rang in his antennae - 'I've done something horrible... So horrible...." He paled as he realized the obvious. "I'm - I'm going to him now." He left without saying anything more to Tah, who he expected would soon fall asleep anyway.  
  
He headed strait to Twaine's room, taking a deep breath before entering. Twaine was huddled in a corner, hugging a pillow closely to his chest. He stepped in, not sure how to approach a situation like this. Finally he spoke. "Tah told me what you did. She knows." He flinched at his lack of tact. Twaine looked up at him, tears streaming down his cheeks. His eyes were wide and trembling as Yempt approached him. "You bombed her room." Twaine nodded sadly. "You almost killed her." Again a nod.  
  
"I didn't want to..."  
  
"But some bastard made you do it." He was now standing directly in front of Twaine as the frightened Irken continued to clutch onto the pillow. Yempt grabbed the pillow and flung it across the room, not caring where it landed. He took a tight hold of Twaine's chin in his hand and looked searchingly into his infinitely red eyes. "She's not going to tell anybody else," Yempt admitted, "And she's going to destroy the evidence it was you."  
  
This did not seem to cheer Twaine up. He wiggled his chin out of Yempt's grip and huddled even closer to the wall. "I'll just have to try again. I'll kill her next time - probably."  
  
There was no apparent sympathy in Yempt's voice, although that was the emotion he wanted to portray. "Who told you to do this?"  
  
Twaine froze, a slight shudder coursing through him. "I - I can't tell you. He'll have someone get me. I'd tell you, but - but he'd have someone get you too." At this thought the intimidated researcher buried his face in his arms, shutting his eyes against a new bombardment of tears.  
  
Yempt got the sudden urge to do something physical to calm the researcher down. He wanted to touch him, or hug him - but he pushed all those thoughts away when he envisioned himself leaning forward and kissing the flamboyant man. Instead he flopped himself on the bed, figuring that just being there would be better then doing something drastic or stupid on his part. "Huk'ra..." he whispered to the silence in the room.  
  
########################################################################  
  
As the morning eventually drifted into the afternoon, Tah was beginning to feel a lot better. She was joyful that she was an Irken, a race known for fast healing. Her wounds were already closing themselves up, and she was able to comfortably sit up after lunch. She calmly read a book Purple had given her when she heard the door his open. She looked up and smiled to see her old boss and comrade, Tzen. He walked in with a smile on his face and a small plant in his hands. He set it on the table next to her. "I heard what happened to you," he said in his sleepy voice as he adjusted the leaves of the plant with a gentle hand. "How do you feel?"  
  
"Much better then I did this morning. I got caught up on a lot of sleep." She smiled. "It's very nice of you to stop by."  
  
He pulled up a chair and seated himself at her side. "A pleasure to see you. You were always one of my best workers." He glanced back over to his plant. "I thought you might want some cheering up. This plant doesn't need water - it lives on air. A fascinating adaptation for survival."  
  
Tah examined the plant, but didn't know enough about flora to see anything special about it. She appreciated the gift nonetheless. "That should make it easy to care for. Thank you."  
  
"You're very welcome." He turned to her and again smiled warmly. Tah didn't know why, but he always made her feel at ease. He was just so calm. "You know, I admire you quite a bit. You're one of the few people I've met who can see something you don't like and do what you need to do to get rid of it, no matter what it takes. I understand that you've been in more than one unsavory situation."  
  
Tah nodded. "Yes, but I look forward to when I'll be through. I'm really sick of this."  
  
There was a sparkle of curiosity in Tzen's eye. "Oh? You're already tired of it all? I thought this sort of thing excited you. You're enthusiasm on a case has gotten quite a bit of attention."  
  
She laughed at the comment. "Some people think I get carried away. All my friends tell me I don't sleep enough when I'm onto something. What they don't know is that I always get my best leads at night!" Her laughter became more hardy, and Tzen grinned happily at her show of good health.  
  
"I brought something for you, figuring you'd be bored." A metal leg reached out of his pod and reached inside, pulling out a box. He looked around for a patient's eating table and placed it over Tah. He emptied the contents of the box to reveal a number of puzzle pieces. "Would you like to put it together?"  
  
"Okay."  
  
The two began to organize the pieces by color and type, separating the end pieces from all the rest. Almost as soon as they had begun, Tzen set two pieces on the table, fitting them together. He smiled and fingered through the pile, pulling out a number of other pieces. He quickly set them down, fitting them together easily with his first two matchers. He made a sound of pleasure as he continued.  
  
Tah began to watch him as he placed piece after piece in its correct spot. She'd never seen anybody so talented at puzzle's before. He noticed her awe and giggled sweetly. "I've always loved puzzles. Anything to occupy the mind." She nodded and continued to watch as he skillfully put the puzzle together.  
  
"Fascinating...." 


	10. The Chill

//This chapter dedicated to Kith - who's gotten me back in the writing strain. She is somewhat of a muse and continues to be so. :)  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Invader Zim.  
  
Chapter Ten: The Chill  
  
There was complete silence in the hall where Tah worked. The area had been evacuated so no one would disturb the evidence. As she worked to do just that - wiping away fingerprints and dismantling all signs of the perpetrator - she tried to keep her mind free from all distractions. That was hard. Everything seemed so jumbled in her usually rational life. It had seemed easy when she had first taken up the job of finding and stopping the mastermind of the invisible criminal syndicate that infested what seemed to be most parts of the galaxy. She had leads to follow, places to go, and people to see. She had liked the excitement of her job and the opportunity to be out on her own, reveling in the freedoms of a non- military life. Yet somehow along the way the feeling had changed. She was still as dedicated as ever, but the enthusiasm had melted away. She did what she did now because she had to - because no one else had to experience to search out and destroy the menace. She had regrets now, such as involving an innocent like Yempt in the whole mess. She couldn't imagine how she could have prevented him from helping her that day, but since then she knew he wasn't completely safe. If her enemy really wanted him to die, he would have been dead a long time ago. People had died because they'd been involved with her, and she didn't want to hold any more of that responsibility. She sighed as she examined her work - she would protect Twaine.  
  
She heard a curious sound down the hall - past the evacuated area. With her work done, she had the leisure to investigate. It sounded like raised voices, and they were coming from behind Tzen's door. Her eyes narrowed with curiosity as she recognized the Head Researcher's usually mellow voice raised to a high pitch.  
  
"That's ridiculas! Are you trying to give everybody on the ship a nervous breakdown?"  
  
Whoever Tzen was yelling at, he didn't seem as aggravated. He answered with a confident, sure voice. Tah couldn't help but perk her antennae up in surprise when she heard the deep sound of his uncommonly low and smooth voice. "It's like a puzzle - this is just another piece."  
  
"I outrank you in more ways then one. If you don't shape up, I will throw you to the authorities. I can - and they'll never realize my part in it all. You'll be placed with all the blame."  
  
"You aren't blameless. If you throw me to them, you'll throw yourself in too."  
  
Tah was highly interested in the conversation, but after a long silence she realized it had stopped. She figured she had better leave before someone walks by to discover her eavesdropping. As she made her way down the hall, her squiggly pooch pounded frantically beneath her chest - Tzen was somehow involved.  
  
A shudder was heard through the Massive, causing even Tah to stop. Confused Irkens glanced around as the vents all blasted freezing air and the temperature began to drop.  
  
########################################################################  
  
Purple sat in his dark room as he heard a strange, rumbling noise reverberate throughout the ship. He felt a cold breeze brush by his antennae, but he made no move to close the vent. He was too preoccupied to move.  
  
He was usually cleanly to a fault, but he just didn't feel like cleaning after himself for the last two days. Everything had its exact spot in his room, so none of the cleaning staff were allowed to put anything away. Instead piles of random books and reports, emptied snack bowls and discarded cloths from days past, were strewn about haphazardly. He stretched out his long legs and set them on the table before his couch, an action he'd yelled at Red for doing many times before.  
  
His door hissed open and a figure walked in. Due the darkness the figure's features could not be distinguished, but his height bespoke of his identity. Red flipped on the light and glanced about the room. "It's worse -" he commented solemnly before hovering to his friends side. He glanced down at his friend, but Purple failed to acknowledge him. Red folded his arms and began to glare.  
  
"What's wrong with you?" he growled fiercely.  
  
"...she almost died."  
  
"So now you're brooding?!? What sense does that make? Huh? And - get your feet off the table, it just isn't right when you do it!" Red violently shoved Purple's feet off the surface of the table, letting them limply land on the floor. Purple didn't seem to care. He just continued to sit silently on his couch. Red waited for a sheer moment before he continued to rant. "She didn't die! She's already up walking around, investigating her own attempted murder! She's fine!"  
  
"But what if -"  
  
"What if!?!" This phrase seemed to drive Red off the deep end. "YIYIYIYIYIYI!" He leapt onto the couch, pushing Purple on his back. He held him down with his powerful arms as he yelled at his shocked friend. "What is the matter with you? If you're the smart one, then how come I'm the one with all the sense? I hate it when you're like this, and I've never seen you like this! Sure, she could die any day now! We all could die any day now! Make the time you have worthwhile, you lavender dumbass! I have faith in her - I think she's going to live. What the Irk is she going to think of you if you ignore her like this? Snap out of it!!!" Red had been shaking Purple all through his speech, and finished with one, hard shove.  
  
Purple looked up at his friend atop him. "...lavender dumbass?"  
  
Red crawled off his companion and brushed himself off, trying to regain some dignity from his recent outburst. "Reference to your robes - you don't see me wearing pink anymore, do you?"  
  
Purple blinked, still lying on his back on the couch. He turned his head slightly to Red. "But - I like lavender. Are you - hey! What are you doing in my drawers?" He quickly regained his senses to defend against this invasion of his privacy. He hovered to Red, who was tearing through his bookcases and draws as if he were looking for something. Purple yanked Red's arm away from his task and glared at him. "What do you think you're doing? These are MY things!"  
  
Red tore himself away from his co-Tallest and continued to search. His eyes were steely with determination but his mouth was twisted into an amused, mischievous smile. "There's got to be something here! Some sappy poem or song or something - that's just the sort of thing you'd do!"  
  
Purple stood aghast as he watched his friend decimate his room. "What are you talking abou - Hey! Don't mess up my socks! They were organized!" Purple again began pulling at his friend's arm, but Red was much too strong to be distracted.  
  
"Nothing in here!" mumbled the scarlet Tallest as he hungrily moved to another section of the room.  
  
It wasn't long before Purple gave up trying to stop Red. He hovered in the center of the room like a quiet eye of a hurricane, silently glaring at the wave of destruction around him. After the entire room had been completely ransacked, Red gave up and approached his co-Tallest. "I can't believe I didn't find anything!" he complained loudly.  
  
"There wasn't anything for you to find!" replied Purple with his arms crossed.  
  
Red rolled his eyes. "I can't believe you have no plans or anything. I mean, you're the sort of person who always plans these things out. You - such a planner!"  
  
"Plans for what?" Purple let his violet eyes roll in his head dramatically. "If you're so 'in tune' with my agenda, why don't you fill me in?"  
  
Red just gave Purple a look that portrayed just how clueless he figured his co-ruler was. "The question..." he reminded blandly. "You need to make the time you have worth~while!"  
  
Purple blinked. "I guess...I do." He glanced around. "It's ... really cold in here!" He wrapped his arms around his shivering body.  
  
########################################################################  
  
Tah searched through her closet to find anything that might keep her warm. The temperature had dropped a good twenty degrees and everyone was now feeling the effects of the malfunctioning air conditioners. Irkens not being much for fashion, all she had was a spare set of the cloths she already had on. She wrapped her arms around her and looked about, her eyes setting on her bed. She quickly dove in under the covers and cocooned herself within them. She hated the cold.  
  
Just as she had thoroughly wrapped herself up she heard her door slide open. She continued to lie on her bed, figuring her visitor was probably Clay or perhaps Yempt, since they were the only friends she had who were off duty at the moment. She was startled when she heard the deep, rumbling voice she'd heard in Tzen's room. "Would this be Tah whom I hear so much about?"  
  
She squirmed herself around to look at him, embarrassed at her state but too entangled to conveniently unravel herself. "Uh -" she laughed nervously. "Yes, I'm Tah." He was a medium-height Irken, about the same size of her former boss, only lean and handsome. Certainly an older gentleman, but one who kept himself up fairly well. He had a set of deep violet eyes that almost rivaled Purple's in brilliance. She blinked and noticed Tzen was standing right next to him, seemingly laid back as usual. They both looked well equipped for the temperature change, both sporting heavy coats. She absently wondered where she could get one.  
  
Tzen stepped forward, an amused grin showing at Tah's situation. "This is my roommate, Vil."  
  
"I didn't know you had a roommate..."  
  
"He's usually not around - chief technical/communications guy on one of the diplomatic vessels."  
  
Tah raised a brow. "That so?" She wondered why Tzen would bother to introduce him to her. They were on friendly terms, but still...  
  
"I have much anticipated meeting you," assured Vil with a smile as he sat next to her blanket shrouded form.  
  
Tah couldn't help but be taken aback as he sat next to her, as if he'd known her all his life. She gave him a sidelong glance before asking, "Where did you hear of me if you were out with the diplomats?"  
  
"Ohh - I have my ways. You haven't just been sitting on the Massive either." He again smiled at her, almost knowingly. There was a hint of excitement in his attitude, and it seemed as if he really had been anticipating the meeting. Tah narrowed her eyes and huddled closer in her covers - this man was too charming. Besides, although neither of them had been on the Massive, she guessed that a diplomatic vessel wouldn't have been anywhere close to the nasty haunts she'd visited in the past two years.  
  
The door slid open once again and to everyone's surprise Tallest Purple hovered in the room. "Hey, Tah! I've come to spend some quality - oh, you already have visitors." He stopped when he saw Tzen standing in the middle of the room and Vil sitting beside her on the bed. He glanced at them and wrapped his arms around his body. "Hey! You have coats!" He sulked. "I want a coat..."  
  
"Well, my Tallest," said Tzen obligingly, "I'm afraid ours won't fit you, but there are some stored in the equipment hall."  
  
Purple nodded to him and then noticed Tah sitting on her bed, completely engulfed in her covers. "Hey! That's not a bad idea!" Some notion entered Tah's head and she huddled deeper into her cocoon as her face turned a deep shade of violet. Purple didn't seem to notice. "Want to come with me and get a coat?" He then glanced toward her visitors, "If you'll excuse us...."  
  
Vil stood and answered him. "Of course, my Tallest." He then turned toward Tah, who was trying desperately to unravel herself. "It was more then a pleasure meeting you. I hope to see you very soon." He and Tzen wiggled their antennae and dutifully left the room.  
  
"Er - want some help with that?" Tah had tripped on her covers and her gangly form was sprawled across the floor.  
  
Once Tah was free from her cocoon of bed sheets, she and Purple began to make their way to the equipment hall. Their relationship wasn't a generally known fact out in public and the two had always maintained some kind of distance when they weren't alone, so it somewhat surprised Tah when Purple didn't hesitate to wrap his slender arm around her shoulders as they moved along. She didn't mind, but couldn't help blushing when she saw the looks she was receiving from passers by. She huddled closer to him, both in defense from the cold and the attention she was getting - then in surprise at someone who was running toward them at a rather quick pace. She blinked, realizing the identity of the runner. He was wearing a gray set of sweatpants with a matching shirt and a red bandana around his forehead as he puffed his way past them. She craned her neck to look after the runner. "Was that Red?"  
  
Purple blinked as well. "Maybe he's trying to keep warm..."  
  
The equipment hall was crowded with Irkens who'd had a similar idea of finding something to protect them from the ever-increasing cold, but they all parted in deference to their Almighty Tallest. Purple hovered over to the racks of clothing and glanced them over, trying to find something that would be large enough. Tah did the same, but found herself wandering to the far end of the hall where she'd located some scarves - apparently designed for those Invaders heading for notoriously cold planets. She picked one up, feeling its feather-soft surface through her gloves and wondered from what material it was made.  
  
A creaking noise made her snap to attention and she looked about to try to find its source, but she was too late - one of the nearby battle mechs began to topple toward her. For an instant her military training failed her as she stood and watched the towering metal giant lean in her direction. She was frozen as she watched it fall, and a voice in the back of her mind calmly informed her that she was going to die just as she was pulled out of the way. She and her savior toppled to the ground just as the mech smashed against the floor with a deadly crunch. She glanced up at the person who had saved her and was now lying on her stomach. "Tzen? You - you already have a coat. How did you know - to come?"  
  
########################################################################  
  
Yempt sat alone in the library. He was not there to examine the literature, but the warm, comfy chairs. It was not a natural setting for him, and he glanced around disdainfully as he shivered. He didn't know why it was so damn cold on the ship, but he wished the engineers would get off their lazy bums and get working on the problem. He leaned back, hoping that the thick upholstery would do something to keep him from freezing to death.  
  
"Are you a cold little waffle?" asked a familiar voice from behind.  
  
Yempt jumped in surprise. "Ack! Wha - waffle! How'd you find me here?!" He glared at Twaine as the researcher sat a little too closely beside him.  
  
"Seems you think the same way I do!" He patted the couch with his black gloved hand. "I was looking for a warmish nest as well!" He grinned widely at Yempt, who just continued to glower. "You look cold!" he suddenly pronounced as he quickly captured Yempt in a playful embrace.  
  
The discontent green-eyed Irken did what he could to squirm away, but gave up once he realized his effort was futile. He gave a frustrated sigh, figuring it was at least warmer to lean against Twaine than the couch. "Aren't you supposed to be working?"  
  
"Break time! It was too cold to work! My claws just couldn't type!" Twaine examined his claws as if they were some abused pets.  
  
"Aren't you supposed to be depressed or something? - I think I like you better depressed." Yempt began regretting his words as he felt Twaine's chest slightly deflate. However, his voice was as cheerful as usual when he replied.  
  
"How can I be depressed when you called me your Huk'ra, Love?"  
  
Yempt's eyes opened wide. "You HEARD that?!"  
  
He felt Twaine's chest vibrate as he giggled like a child. "I'm glad to note that our relationship has reached a new level!" He rose one finger in the air as if in triumph.  
  
"We don't have a 'relationship'! I - I hate you!" With that declaration Yempt jumped out of the couch and ran toward his room. He would most certainly lock the door. 


	11. Secret Agent Man

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters on Invader Zim. I also don't own Myu or Soli. Myu belongs to Invader Myu/Utah and Soli belongs to Sev.  
  
//There is some sort of connection with the timeline between this fic and the fic of a friend of mine - Across the Stars. Do read it - it's based on an RPG of hers.  
  
//I felt I really needed to give Zim another cameo, so, here it is.  
  
//I will be gone until September going to Fish Camp, visiting Alaska, and moving into my college dorm. I will continue my story after my return.  
  
//Warning: I am seriously thinking of rewriting this entire Tah thing - seeing as her character in this story doesn't seem to correlate with that what is in my mind. I would certainly like some comments or suggestions on the matter - and anything you might like to see with any of the characters. Thanks for reading!  
  
Chapter Eleven: Secret Agent Man  
  
Tah blinked at her electronic pad, glancing over the notes she had made. She had spent a good portion of the day organizing her thoughts on her new suspicions about Tzen and his roommate Vil and still didn't understand how the two were connected with her prey. She was yet more confused about why Tzen had suddenly shown up to push her out of the way of that falling mech. Certainly if he were a member of the syndicate he would want her dead, but then again it might had been a ploy to knock her off track. She scratched her head and reached out for another cookie.  
  
She sat between Red and Purple as they went about their business. There was another thing that confused her - the behavior of her Tallest, more specifically Purple. After her first 'accident' he had withdrawn himself from her company. During the days after the explosion he visited her only once and she'd been half conscious at the time. Aside from that she began to wonder if he'd perhaps changed his mind about being close to someone who had such dangerous associations - it had nearly broken her squiggly pooch. Just as she started losing hope he randomly appeared in her room, rekindling the flame, and after the mech 'accident' he refused to leave her side. At the moment he contently reviewed some policies that he would present during a meeting that afternoon. She smiled. He was so quiet and studious when he wasn't playing around with Red and his presence had a strangely calming effect on her. She then glanced over at Red, who looked absolutely miserable as he fidgeted in his chair and tried to review the same policies as Pur. He finally set his datapad down with a frustrated noise and began to rub his temples with a moan.  
  
There was an even greater moan, emitted from both Red and Purple, when one of the many communications officers announced, "Incoming Transmission from Earth!" Tah glanced at her Tallest to see if she should perhaps leave, but they motioned for her to stay. The face of a very short, red-eyed Irken appeared on the monitor.  
  
"My Tallest! Such things I have to report! My magnificent brain has devised the most - Ahh!" Red, Purple, and Tah all leaned forward in surprise when another Irken pushed him aside. She was about two feet taller then Zim with bright orange eyes.  
  
"Hi there, My Tallest!" cheered the female with an enthusiastic wave. Tah looked back and forth at her Tallest as they both gaped at the picture before them.  
  
"Myu?!" finally exclaimed Red. "What on Irk are you doing on Earth? .... And with ZIM!?"  
  
The Irken female giggled to herself, not at all concerned with her situation. "Our ship crashed and was damaged beyond repair." She gained a thoughtful expression on her face for a moment and grinned. "Soli's with me too!" From behind her a figure, somewhat hidden by the shadows, stepped forward. Though she was similar in appearance and height to Myu, she did not share the euphoric glee of her friend.  
  
"She dragged me here," Soli explained in a flat voice, her purple eyes glinting with the light from the monitor.  
  
"Ahh." Purple said, somewhat anxious about the situation. He glanced at Red, but only received a similarly confused glance in response. "Well, since your ship was destroyed -"  
  
He was interrupted when Zim exploded back onto the screen. "I will not be pushed aside!" he yelled, waving his arms angrily at Myu, who merely giggled at his rage. "I said you could talk to them AFTER and only AFTER I was through!" He gave her one last glare before he turned back to his Tallest. "Ahem. As I was saying, my most tall leaders, I have a BRILLIANT -"  
  
"Don't interrupt Purple!" ordered Red in harsh tones that succeeded in quieting the outcast Irken.  
  
"But - but - my Tallest!"  
  
Purple sighed. "Right - well.... Since you're ship was destroyed, we'll send someone to go pick you up. One can be there in, I'd say, about a month or so. Sound good?"  
  
Now Soli was excited. "Yes! Thank you! The sooner I'm off this planet - and away from him -" she pointed at Zim, "the better!" She was almost frantic in her expressions.  
  
Myu was less happy. "Er, my Tallest. I request permission to stay!" She grinned up at them, hopefully.  
  
"WHAT?!" was the shocked response from both Red and Purple. "Why?"  
  
"Why?" Myu glanced around enviously, as if looking for an answer. "Well...I - want to - Oh! Please, my Tallest! Please!" She widened her eyes cutely as she pleaded with them.  
  
Tah blinked at the two young females, wondering at how they could be so informal with their leaders. Red and Purple didn't seem to mind Myu's familiarity with them, and Tah seriously began to wonder if she seemed stiff in the way she interacted with them, since she always tried to give them proper respect while they were in public. She felt her muscles loosen as she began to relax in her chair.  
  
"Okay! Okay!" answered Purple without much resistance. Red glared at Purple's decision, but was apparently in no mood to contradict him at the moment. "We'll send a ship for Soli and Myu can stay. However, Myu, if you change your mind we will be more than happy to send a ship for you."  
  
"More than happy!" chimed Red.  
  
"Thank you, my Tallest," replied Myu with a brilliant smile. She paused for a second as she stared at the monitor. "Who - who is that person sitting with you?" Tah sighed at the fact she'd gone completely unnoticed for so long.  
  
Red grinned widely as Purple performed the introductions. "Oh - heh - Myu, Soli, this is Tah, our Chief Investigator, currently investigating a matter aboard the ship. Tah, this is Myu and Soli, students of Red and me. We, er, acquired them after you left and they were on a short mission before they - ahem - crashed." Tah nodded, silent and shy at the experience of gaining new acquaintances.  
  
"My Tallest! IF Myu is finished, I would like to continue with my report." The high-pitched yell of Zim broke the serenity of the room. "It is PERFECT! I even have a way to distract that - arg! - that DIB!" At the mention of his arch-enemy's name he began to loose control, growling and clawing at the air. "Pointy hair?! I'll show him POINTY HAIR! He will not be able to face the wrath of the WEASALS!!!"  
  
"Oh, would you look at that!" Red quickly mentioned as Tah and Purple stared at Zim's outrage. "We have another call! You'll have to tell us about this plan later. Soli, we'll have a ship for you as soon as possible! Myu, er, we'd really like you to reconsider your decision and get away from that insane - eep! - I mean, hard-working Zim... Yeah." With a nod of his head to one of the communications officers the transmission was shut off.  
  
Purple sighed into his hand. "I am getting so tired of those - eh, who is he?" He directed his gaze toward a man who'd just entered unannounced. Tah shifted in her seat as she saw him, and both Red and Purple gave her a questioning glance. The man confidently flashed some sort of badge at the Tallest of a make Tah didn't recognize. The Tallest seemed to, because Purple addressed him immediately in a serious and businesslike tone, "Yes, soldier?"  
  
Vil smiled directly at Tah, piercing her with an unsetting gaze. "I need to speak with your Chief Investigator, if you don't mind."  
  
Purple was hesitant. He didn't like the look of this newcomer, but then again, he did have that badge... He glanced nervously at Tah. He'd sworn that he wouldn't let her out of his sight, but was such a thing really possible? "I don't know..."  
  
"Oh, let her go, Pur," said Red, already somewhat out of sorts. "He has the badge - she'll be fine."  
  
"Thank you," said Vil in his deep, smooth voice. Tah stood, not sure what to think, and warily followed this mysterious roommate of Tzen's. She swallowed, wishing she carried a laser on a regular basis, but tried to shrug off her worry, reassuring herself it was too late for regrets now. He led her to the dining hall so they could get a drink and sat across from her at the table.  
  
"What are you?" Tah asked, now in her full investigation mode. Certainly this man was here to give her some sort of information. "What was that badge you showed the Tallest?"  
  
Vil leaned forward and smiled at her a little too broadly. His handsomeness made Tah feel uncomfortable and she realized she was squirming. "Well," he said melodiously, "The Tallest actually have a Special Forces team. A secret one. They always have. We do a series of odd jobs around the Empire, the kind they want hushed up, if you will."  
  
"Convenient that you travel with a diplomat," commented Tah. "You must get all sorts of privileges that help you with your job - not to mention access to planets that might otherwise be restricted."  
  
Vil nodded, his expression almost proud. It was the sort of look that made shivers run down Tah's spine. She looked down at her cup, not sure how to approach the man. "What did you want with me?" she asked almost sheepishly.  
  
He laughed. "Don't worry, Miss Tah, my interest in you is purely professional. It actually stems from the fact we are searching for the same person." He watched as Tah gaped at him, wide-eyed and ecstatic.  
  
"You are? We can exchange note! Here, let me get my pad!" An arm came from her back pod, handing her the electronic pad that was stored there. She hurriedly activated it and began to press some buttons. "Maybe we'll be able to piece together who he is!"  
  
"Oh, no, I already know that."  
  
Tah stopped and looked up at him, her expression slightly confused. "You - do?" As realization set in she slammed her pad on the table. "You do? My Irk! Who is it and why hasn't he been executed? How long have you known?" There were a thousand questions buzzing in her brain, but those were the most immediate.  
  
Vil slowly and gracefully traced his claw around the brim of his cup. There was distinct amusement in his voice as he replied, "I've known for a while, and there are some things I want to wrap up before I tighten my net around him. I've sort of been working undercover - hiding myself within his organization, and there are a number of villains I'd like to bring down along with him." He paused for a moment, building up the suspense as Tah waited with a frozen expression. When he did continue, he spoke as if what he knew was the most apparent thing in the world. "It's Tzen, Tah. It's Tzen."  
  
The investigator felt a long sigh escape her body, relief at finally coming to an end of her journey surrounding her like the chilling blanket of death. Suddenly she realized that once she retired, a part of her personality, a new part that she'd developed during her investigation, would die. That was what she wanted after all, though, so she allowed herself to smile. She had to admit she was disappointed at not being the one to discover the identity of her foe after working so long at it, but she pushed that feeling away. What was important was him getting caught, not her sense of personal glory. "Tzen," she repeated to herself. "Tzen - I used to work for him, too." She giggled at the irony. "Tzen. He's so nice too! Tzen. Oh well, he was getting suspicious - Tzen. When are you going to inform the Tallest and have in caught?"  
  
Vil shrugged, "It shouldn't be to far off now. Days, I'd think. I wanted to tell you because I've just been informed that you were searching for him - thought I'd take a load off your back. You," he grinned to himself, "you might want to start thinking of what you plan to do now. I hear you've grown weary of the investigation business."  
  
She nodded. "Yes, yes. It's not the work that gets to me - I'm used to long hours. I just didn't like to see the things he did to people, you know, the ones who suffered because of what he did." She visibly shuddered. "Lives destroyed. . ."  
  
Her companion nodded with a saddened look of deep understanding. "Yes, Tzen's ordered some horrible things done." He watched her for a moment before his eyes brightened with an idea. "Why don't you go back and see our Tallest? I hear they are generally delighted to see you."  
  
Tah blushed, realizing what Vil was suggesting. It was almost creepy how well this man seemed to know her, but she supposed it was his job to be observant. She smiled and stood, wiggling her antennae before turning to leave.  
  
'What a strange guy,' she couldn't help thinking as she snaked through the numerous catacomb passageways of the Massive. 'He must really be a genius, and very - what the?' She looked down to see Yempt flailing on the floor, extremely unhappy at the fact she'd just walked right into him. She leaned down to help him up, but he didn't seem to appreciate the gesture. "Are you alright?"  
  
"Don't pretend you care!" he admonished. "Just try to look where you go next time! Just because you're tall doesn't mean you shouldn't look down every once in a while!"  
  
Tah stood awkwardly, not sure how to take his comments. "That's harsh. . . Where's Twaine? Aren't you supposed to be with him? I thought you were going to protect him."  
  
"Just because you assigned me to do something doesn't mean I'm going to do it. I may technically be under your command at the moment, but considering the circumstance of my recruitment I should hardly think my behavior is under your jurisdiction. Besides, I was trained as a kitchen assistant and waiter, not some fancy disciplinarian's assistant." As he finished he narrowed his dark green eyes at her and posed indignantly, making certain his posture reflected his mood.  
  
"Okay," said Tah after a moment of reflection, "I'm sorry." She was never a very social person, but dealing with someone like him was impossible. She averted her gaze from his glare and tried to think of how to end the conversation. "I - guess I'll recommend you for a more suitable job. You must be bored." With that abrupt ending she nodded at him and stiffly marched away.  
  
Yempt frowned after her, determined not to let her know he was actually looking for the researcher he'd been assigned to protect. No matter what, Twaine had made it a point to stop by Yempt's room for a visit - to 'brighten his droopy doughnut's day,' as he had so eloquently put it. Yet since that day when Yempt had insisted he hated him, the goofy Irken had failed to show. 'It's not that I care what he thinks of me,' Yempt reassured himself, 'but I have nothing to do - might as well see what he's up to.' He'd scoured almost the entire ship, having already checked the Information Hive and being informed Twaine had requested and been granted a day off.  
  
There was really only one place he could seriously check after discovering the researcher's room was empty. He headed to the Entertainment Center, which at that time in the day was at least somewhat lit and lacked the loud, repetitive music Yempt disliked so much. He wandered in and immediately saw his friend, but hesitated in approaching. Twaine was holding a drink on one hand and gesturing with another as he conversed with some slightly tall marauder with glimmering light orange eyes. He didn't even acknowledge Yempt as he strode to the bar and ordered himself something to drink, preferring to flatter the marauder with a charming smile. Yempt glared gloomily at him, waiting to be noticed. There was no way he couldn't have been seen, he was right out there in plain view. He finally took action. "Ahem!" he coughed loudly.  
  
Twaine turned to look at him, his charming smile disappearing. His new marauder friend glanced at Yempt with interest, and the researcher had no choice but to introduce them. "Kip, this is an acquaintance of mine I met at Clay's party - Yempt."  
  
"An acquaintance?" Yempt raised one brow. "I thought I was your waffle." He didn't want to sound like he liked the ridiculous nickname, so he made sure to add a tinge of dripping sarcasm to his voice.  
  
Twaine shrugged his shoulders and turned back to Kip, "...a burnt waffle," he explained coldly.  
  
The former waiter gaped at Twaine, a salty, stinging sensation beginning to invade his widened eyes. He hopped off his stool with a growl of disgust, leaving his untouched drink behind. "That's the last time I make a friend," he grumbled bitterly to himself as he hurried to his room. "- teaches me to trust someone" 


	12. Changing Goals

#I can't believe how long this took! Please forgive me! I think I've changed my mind about finishing this story... I'm gonna do it!  
  
Tah strolled down the long corridors of the Massive with truly nothing to do. Vil seemed to have things under control and had informed her that he would let her know when he needed her. She felt terribly empty with nothing to do – her only consolation being that Vil promised that she'd have a hand in Tzen's final capture. Well, that and the realization that her mission was now drawing to and end and that she would finally have some free time to spend on the Massive. She stretched out her arms and tried to relax. It was still difficult to believe that Tzen, her jolly former boss, was the evil man she'd been after all this time. She supposed he did have the resources, considering he was in charge of all the information on the ship.  
  
Suddenly a small person passed her, his head buried in his little hands. Tah turned and watched him run off in the distance. 'Was that Yempt?' she wondered. She wasn't sure, but if it was, she knew he wouldn't want her to see him cry. He was very sensitive about that sort of thing, and she was still under the impression that he didn't like her very much. Instead she decided to report to her Tallest, who would be in the main transmission room. This new development was sure to please them, and it was nice to have happy news for once.  
  
At the moment she walked in, Red and Purple were fighting over a remote control. However, when Purple saw her he released his grab, causing Red to fly backwards and fall on his ass. "Ow! That hurt!" Red growled at his co-ruler, who annoyingly paid no attention to him. Instead Purple walked up to Tah and escorted her into the room.  
  
"Did you enjoy meeting Vil?" he asked happily. "I'm sorry we hadn't informed you about the presence of the Special Forces before, but its ultra- super-secret."  
  
Tah smiled and walked up to help up Red, who was still lying on the floor with a disgruntled look on his face. "I'm glad SOMEBODY cares about my well-being! Hm!" He gave another mean glance at his friend before returning to his usual carefree mood. "At least the controller is mine!" He held up the remote with an air of triumph.  
  
"My Tallest, I have good news to report!" The smile on Tah's face to prove this statement.  
  
Red cheered, "Finally! An end to the doom and gloom!"  
  
"What is it?" asked Purple in a more serious tone. He was still nervous about Tah's safety, and therefore could not feel relieved.  
  
Tah took a long, calm breath before beginning. Indeed, she looked calmer than she had for a long time. "As both of you know I just visited with Vil. I certainly wish I'd known about him earlier." She wagged a reprimanding finger at her Tallest. "And here you told me I had 'sweeping authorization!'"  
  
"But you did – or do – except we didn't think to – I mean we're so used to not mentioning them and – I'm really sorry – if it would have helped........." Purple sputtered, apparently embarrassed about the oversight.  
  
The investigator shrugged. "It doesn't matter now. At least we've met now. And he's given me some valuable information. He's been on the same track as me, and has accomplished what I've failed to do. He has the distinction of having figured out who our evil mastermind is!" She lifted her arms as if she were praising the ceiling. "Thank goodness, it's over! Or almost ever at least."  
  
"Don't keep us in suspense!" pleaded Purple, his hands wringing with anticipation.  
  
"Yeah!" followed Red, "Spit it out! We'll send a squad over and," he pounded one fist into his other hand, "BAM!"  
  
"No, no, no! This has to be done right. Remember, I have a whole list of cohorts that need arresting, and apparently so does Vil. If we take out the boss immediately, they'll all get the picture and jump ship. We need to think about how we want to catch him, and plan things accordingly."  
  
"Feh! She's a planner." Red turned his head to his companion, "No wonder you like her!"  
  
Purple rolled his eyes at his co-Tallest. "But who is it, Tah! My curiosity is getting the best of me! I swear we won't lay a single claw on him, and let you and Vil do whatever you like."  
  
Red accompanies Purple's plead with a long, high-pitched, "Pleeeeaaaase!"  
  
Tah shrugged and stepped closer to her leaders. She whispered as quietly as she could manage, "Tzen."  
  
Purple immediately jumped. "What?! But he's one of our must trusted – most loyal – I can't believe that HE of all Irkens would –" Red slapped his claws over Purple's mouth, shutting the monarch up.  
  
"Can't you tell she's trying to be all secretive-like? Geez!"  
  
Tah smiled at the two. "It should be over soon. My second reason for dropping by was to request a new assignment. I need to figure out what I'm going to do after all this is trough. We had mentioned the position communications officer, or maybe I could do something more mechanical. I did study weapons systems in Divastis. Or whatever you think might be suitable for my talents. I trust your judgment completely. My only request," she asked in a shyer tone as she glanced over at Purple, "is that I am stationed on the Massive."  
  
"Naturally!" exclaimed Purple with uncharacteristic enthusiasm. "I'm sure we'll be able to find something."  
  
Red was also happy. He'd acquired a plate of nachos from somewhere and his mouth was covered in cheese. "Yeah, and you'll get more Reshma practice in too! I'll make you the second-best Reshma-fighter in the know universe!"  
  
Purple eyed Red's nachos. "Hey, where'd you get those?"  
  
Red held them away, "They're mine!"  
  
"Aw! Can't I have some! I want some nachos!"  
  
"You'll have to get your own, you purple menace!" Red began taunting his co-Tallest, dancing around the room while skillfully balancing his plate of nachos. Purple naturally chased him.  
  
Tah cleared her through. "My Tallest!" she said in a loud voice. The two stopped what they were doing and looked at her. "I have a third request, my Tallest." She stepped forward, showing off her haggard appearance caused by stress and overwork. "I'd like to request the day off. I'm exhausted and I'm finally feeling an inclination toward rest."  
  
"Of course!" It was only now that the two Tallest realized the smell that their fair companion was emitting. "Eh! How long has it been since you've bathed? Go and use some chalk, soldier!" Red took an authoritative stance, and Tah happily left the room. Purple munched on stolen nachos. The moment Tah was gone Red noticed the disappearance. He glared toward his companion. "Hey!"  
  
########################################################################  
  
Yempt couldn't believe he was actually crying. He hadn't sobbed since he'd been a little smeet. He was angry at himself for being upset. Why should he be? He didn't care what Twaine thought of him. He'd only been using the flirtatious researcher as entertainment. Now that it was over he'd just have to find something else that would bring a little color and joy into his otherwise bland and boring life. He kicked the table in his room, only to injure himself. He ended up on the floor, holding his throbbing foot, sobbing loudly.  
  
After a few moments Yempt couldn't help admitting that he did feel betrayed. That he actually thought of Twaine of his Huk'ra at the very least. He didn't want to think that Twaine had just been using him to have a little bit of fun. Then again, why shouldn't he throw away a little green-eyed shorty like Yempt? Especially after he said all those mean things to him. Yempt frantically tried to think back at his acquaintance with the cheerful researcher. Had he ever said anything encouraging to him? Had he not done everything in his power to discourage him? The realization that it was all his fault dawned upon Yempt.  
  
He then remembered all the tragedy that had occurred during the past few days. The fact that Twaine was being manipulated to sneak about and set bombs. How could he fight with his Huk'ra when this kind of stuff was going on? Hadn't Twaine been miserable about his circumstance, and afraid for his very life? The more Yempt thought, the more he hated himself. How could he be so harsh to Twaine when the researcher was under all this stress?  
  
He dried his eyes and straitened himself. "Burnt waffle indeed! I'll show him what kind of waffle I really am!" With this determined statement, Yempt marched out of the room, toward the Entertainment Center once more.  
  
#Goodness! It took me, what, two years to update this time? Sorry! I promise not to do it again. Sorry this chapter was so short – I need to gauge my lengths again 


	13. Turnabout is Fair Play

Purple sat in his throne, silently glancing at a datapad. He was reading over a speech he was to make that afternoon to the troops. In the throne beside him sat Red, who was supposed to be looking over the same speech, but was instead leaning back, eating a bowl of popcorn. The scarlet-clad Tallest grinned mischievously and picked up one kernel with his long claws. He aimed, and made a direct hit on Purple's head. Purple made no reaction. Red frowned and picked up another kernel. This time when it hit his fellow leader's head, he made 'kaboom' noise. Still his friend ignored him. He threw another, and another, and eventually he could see Purple's face tighten with frustration. "Will you stop that and get to work!" exploded the exasperated Tallest.  
  
"Bah! This work is boring!" Red threw his datapad on the floor.  
  
"But it still needs to be done! And you haven't looked over the treaty with the Nelioids either, which was supposed to be done last week. And there are a few new policies that need to be reviewed tomorrow, so we don't have time to slack off today!"  
  
"And blah, blah, blah, blah, blah... I get it already. I'll do all my work." He then perked up. "Ooh! Ooh! I'll do yours too! That would give you a nice day off!" He smiled happily at his suggestion.  
  
Purple eyed him with a suspicious glare. "Yeah ... right. Whenever I take a day off, you blow the work off. It's hard enough to get you to do anything while I'm around." He slunk back into his throne and concentrated on the datapad in front of him.  
  
Red pouted. "You don't trust me!"  
  
"Darn right."  
  
"But I'd be super motivated. I'll make this the best speech ever! We'll be known throughout the universe for our eloquence. Irkens will be forever known as the smartest, most well-spoken race ever! We'll be so respected, whole galaxies will beg us to dominate them, just so they can be a member of the mighty brilliance which is the Irken Empire," he picked up his datapad and gave it a look of reverence, "and all because of this one speech."  
  
Purple studied his comrade, questioning his intelligence. "That speech is about a need for more roads on Irk.... Not very inspiring."  
  
Red threw the datapad back down on the floor. "Then not worth spending so much time on! Come on! You know you want a break. Eh? Eh?" He was now nudging Purple in the arm. "And I'll take care of everything else."  
  
"And the point of this is?" Usually when his friend was so persistent, there was something under his sleeve.  
  
"Oh, no reason," replied Red innocently. "Just thought you might want some time off. I mean, you've been working so hard. And you've been so worried about Tah recently. Now that everything is drawing to a close, I think it might be time for you to kick back and relax."  
  
Purple frowned at his co-ruler. "And... does this have anything to do with the time you ransacked my room? I still need to clean all that junk up..." He glowered at the thought of the disorganization. "You wanted me to write something? Or something like that?"  
  
"No! You don't get it, do you? I thought you scholars were supposed to be smart. I was hoping you'd written something sappy, but it turns out you're just as dense as any other man. Probably more so."  
  
Purple cocked one brow, "You talk as if you weren't a man."  
  
"Dak! Ask Dak! He'd only known Clay for, what, a week? He lost no time in asking her!"  
  
Purple could no longer hide the smile that was creeping on his face. He tried to look confused. "Dak? I don't remember him writing anything? Does he have some hidden talent I don't know about?"  
  
"I'm not talking about any sort of stupid balled! You are intentionally misunderstanding me!" If Red had hair, he'd be pulling it out.  
  
"If only you would just tell me what you wanted, then I wouldn't misunderstand." Now Purple was openly laughing at his frustrated companion.  
  
Red dramatically pointed a claw at his friend. "You! You know I'm not good talking about this kind of thing! You know what I mean! It involves that squiggly pooch of yours and Tah! And if you don't start taking a hint, I'll have to rip that squiggly pooch out of your chest and hand it to her myself!" He picked up his bowl of popcorn and threw it at Purple, sending yellow kernels flying about the room.  
  
Purple jumped out of his thrown in a futile attempt to avoid the popcorn. "You bastard! You're messing up my robes!" He grabbed a handful of kernels and threw them back at Red. "How do you like it? Huh? Huh?"  
  
Red lunged at his co-Tallest, but for once Purple was able to wiggle away. He floated out of the room and down the corridor, with Red in close pursuit. The workers back in the transmission room who had ignored their Tallest's behavior now allowed themselves to chatter. One leaned over to another, "Damnit, they are weird."  
  
Down the hall Red was chasing a now laughing Purple. He led the disgruntled Tallest into his room, and dove behind his desk, amidst some of the clutter his friend had caused earlier. Before Red could reach Purple a datapad smacked into his forehead. "You've suffered enough, Huk'ra! I think that's what you were looking for!" He sat on the floor and watched Red's confused look as he glanced at the pad.  
  
"This isn't what I was looking for! This is in some foreign tongue. Useless!"  
  
Purple laughed. "I can't believe you don't know what your own native language looks like, you uneducated brute! I thought you might bother me about this, so I wrote my appeal in a language you certainly wouldn't understand. I'll get to it when I'm good and ready, so there!" He stuck his pointy tongue out at his friend.  
  
A look of shock crossed Red's features. "What? You knew all along? You were just pretending not to know? You – you led me on!" Purple began to cackle at his gullibility, which won him a datapad in the face.  
  
########################################################################  
  
Yempt was finally nearing the Entertainment Center. Although it didn't take long to get there, his anxiety made it feel like an eternity. He hoped Twaine was still there. And he hoped that marauder he'd been with was gone. Certainly Twaine wouldn't replace him so quickly. He quickened his pace, when he saw Twaine turning the corner. Thankfully alone. Yempt ran up to his side and waited to be acknowledged. However, his usually sociable friend looked strait ahead, as if Yempt wasn't even there.  
  
"Hey!" yelped Yempt and he jumped up and down. "Aren't you at least going to say hello?" There was no response. "It's bad enough being a waffle, but I certainly don't want to be a burnt one!" There was still no response. "Look, I know you're mad at me, but you should at least show some sign that you know I'm here!" Finally a response.  
  
"I'm not talking to someone who hates me."  
  
Yempt wrung his tiny hands. He wasn't used to talks like this. Talks where he needed to be the outgoing member. "Okay, well, maybe I don't hate you. I was just being my usual harsh self. You know, miserable and all that."  
  
"Maybe I don't want to be friends with a miserable person."  
  
Yempt shook his small fists in the air. "You used to! You made it so obvious that you liked me!"  
  
"And you made it so obvious that you didn't like me. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to get back to the Hive." With that, Twaine quickly changed directions, walking as quickly as possible so his shorter companion could not follow.  
  
########################################################################  
  
On the other side of the ship Tah stretched herself out on the observation deck. Many Irkens, especially those who are constantly in space like the crew of the Massive, lose interest in the vastness of space. Tah, however, never had. Even when she was on the hunt for her culprit, she occasionally took time to look out the window and marvel at the thousands of stars that spotted the blackness of the universe. She'd just bathed, and she was feeling very clean and comfortable. In her hand was a datapad containing a bit of literature she'd wanted to read. She hadn't had time to do any pleasure reading for the longest time. Although she was very content, she wished Purple would call her to his quarters to spend some time with him. Despite their closeness, she still didn't feel right barging in on his time. He was still a Tallest.  
  
Tah was just about to begin her novel when a dark shadow hovered over her. She looked up to find none other than Tzen, the nebulous enemy whom she hated with all her being. Yet, looking up at his jolly, familiar face, he was still so hard to hate. She could only suppose this was his secret. She stood up, which caused her to tower above him by more that a foot. She smiled awkwardly, determined not to let him in on the horrid fate she and Vil had planned for him.  
  
"Hello there, Miss Tah," said Tzen in a pleasant voice. "It's so nice to see you finally relax." He seemed genuinely happy.  
  
Tah scratched the back of her neck, trying not to look nervous. "It certainly quite the luxury. One I haven't enjoyed in a long time." She stretched out her lanky frame. "Mmmm...feels nice."  
  
Tzen chuckled. "I bet it does. I bet it does." He paused for a moment, as if in thought. They were alone on the observation deck. "So, I suppose Vil's taken up the investigation?"  
  
Tah nearly jumped with surprise. "Ah, what do you mean? I mean, why in the world would you think that? He's not an investigator," she lied.  
  
Shaking his head, her former boss responded, "Oh, I know his profession. You can't live with a man and not have some confidential information spill out onto your side of the room. I've even got a handle on his current project, so you needn't be surprised, deary, when I know I little more than this old Irk ought to." He then changed his expression. Instead of his cheerful self, he looked sad and even a little frightened. "However, sometimes one finds out more than one wants to. Tah, it wasn't by chance that I ran into you this evening. I was searching you out so I could let you know that Vil isn't who he seems to be, and that I'm not who he says I am. I know what he's told you about me, and I must tell you that it just isn't so! I'll admit, that I have been caught up in a few of his dealings... I've transferred illicit payments and sent threatening messages to people he's wanted to intimidate, and I'm perfectly willing to suffer any of the consequences of my actions, but I swear to you I'm not this mastermind everyone's so scared of!" The elder gentleman looked deeply and solemnly into Tah's maroon eyes, and his manner was so sincere that Tah couldn't help but want to believe him.  
  
"You said you were only caught up in it?" He voice sounded more dumbfounded than she would have liked.  
  
Tzen lowered his head in shame. "Yes, just like that poor Twaine, I've been bullied and manipulated. Forced to do things that are against my nature, but frightened of what might happened if I did not go along."  
  
Tah's expression was very intense. She could see her enemy slipping through her grasp. "Than who? Do you know who it really is, if it isn't you?" She gasped with anticipation when he saw Tzen's large head nod 'yes.'  
  
The old man looked from side to side, as if making sure no one was there to hear him. He then leaned in close to Tah and said silently, "You've been deceived by Vil, my dear. He's the one you're after, and I can give you the evidence to prove it. Come with me, my dear, to the Hive!"  
  
#Well, that one was a little longer, and I hope a lot more interesting. I'm not real sure how Yempt and Twaine should resolve their issues – does anyone have a suggestion? 


	14. New Beginnings

Tah followed her former boss and potential rival, breathless with anticipation. If Tzen was telling the truth, this was a magnificent lead, but if he wasn't, this could be a magnificent trap. Either way, she was compelled to follow. It seemed like forever before the two reached the Hive, but when they did they lost no time in heading towards Tzen's workstation. "Here," explained the portly researcher, "are the transactions I've saved over the years of my servitude. These are several transmissions sent to me by Vil, sending me instructions. Here, just to prove it, I'll check the log for you. See, they come from the ISC Cheezit, the vessel Vil works on." Tah hurriedly read transmission after incriminating transmission, and they indeed seemed to be what Tzen claimed. Her mouth felt dry. This was the kind of strait-forward evidence she'd been longing for. "And here are monetary transactions that show that he's received monies from several unsavory sources, and sent out monies to minions like myself." There was a hint of shame that lingered in those final words.  
  
"Oh Tzen!" said Tah after she'd read and reread all the evidence presented to her. "This is more than enough to convince me. You poor man!" She wrapped one long arm around him to give him a reassuring hug. "I'll make sure the manipulation you endured will be considered when your crimes are evaluated. You're punishment will be light, if there is any."  
  
A weight seemed to be lifted off the researcher's shoulders. "Oh, you are a dear, aren't you! It will be such a relief to have all this behind me! But you must hurry – Vil is a sly one, and if he suspects we've met, then he'll be gone before you get a chance to catch him!"  
  
Tah nodded her head. "I'll leave you and go to the Tallest at once!" She bolted out of the room, making sure to have a copy of the evidence with her, but then stopped. She realized that she shouldn't look hurried, because if Vil ran into her, it would look awfully suspicious. She slowed her pace to an agonizingly slow crawl, and tried to look as relaxed as possible. She held her datapad to her chest, so she might pretend it was a harmless book as opposed to incriminating information. She couldn't believe Tzen had known for so long and not told her about Vil, but then again, he could have been as afraid for his life as Twaine. She remembered back when Tark had been so uncooperative to save his daughter, and all those other times when she'd found people who'd been blackmailed to protect themselves or those they loved. She found it difficult not to scowl with anger as she tried to lazily saunter down the hall.  
  
When she arrived, the Tallest were sitting in their thrones, glancing over some datapads. Her frantic appearance got them to immediately stop what they were doing. "Look at this!" she said as she handed them the pad. It only took a few minutes looking at it to figure out what all the information meant. "This was given to me by Tzen – he isn't our man!"  
  
Purple looked at her very seriously, "And you're sure this information is correct? He's not misleading you."  
  
"He couldn't force those verification codes," she assured him. "And I think we need to act swiftly. We need to round up all the accomplices who live on this ship, I have a list ready, and the creep as well. We need to get them all at once, lest someone gets a clue and jumps ship. Are some marauders handy?"  
  
Red puffed up with pride, "The marauders are always ready."  
  
"And I have your authorization to use them?"  
  
The two Tallest looked at eachother and then at her, as if the answer was obvious, "Well ... yeah."  
  
Tah smiled. "Then let's do this."  
  
########################################################################  
  
Yempt stood in the hall for a long moment after Twaine left him. His first attempt at getting this Irk to like him again hadn't worked. With Twaine's generally happy personality, he'd had no doubt that the researcher would take him back. Now it was evident that Twaine didn't even want to see him. Yempt crossed his arms and glared at the floor, reflecting on all the heartache he'd experienced in the past day. Certainly nobody was worth all this. Life without Twaine would be just like it was before he met the flamboyant Irken. Predictable. Colorless. Dull. Yempt could feel himself sink into a deeper depression. He would probably become a waiter on this ship, which he admitted would be a step up in the world. And he could try to avoid Twaine, because as much as the former waiter didn't want to admit it, even seeing the researcher would cause him to break down. Even now, tears were welling in Yempt's dark green eyes.  
  
'This won't do,' he thought to himself. 'You can't avoid someone when you work in the dining hall.' Yempt was positive that he would end up working in the dining hall, and everybody except the most high-ranking officials ate there. 'And I can't afford to be distraught every time he comes to eat ... with his friends.' The thought of the marauder Twaine was with only made him more miserable. Had Twaine changed his mind about him because of something he said, or because there was a more desirable option out there? Yempt always knew that he was by no means attractive. Short, round, and green-eyed, he considered himself exceedingly ugly. Despite this evaluation, Yempt could feel something hot welling up inside of him. Something like jealousy.  
  
He needed to do something to change the situation. He could not stand being on bad terms with Twaine. He needed to do something that was sure to get Twaine's attention. He stood in the hall, thinking for a moment. He nodded his head, as if deciding upon a plan of action, and then raced down the hall.  
  
########################################################################  
  
On the outside Tah seemed calm as she walked down one long corridor of the Massive, but inside her mind and squiggly pooch was racing. She'd already given instructions to a select, trusted group of marauders. In exactly one minute and ten seconds they would strike. Several of Vil's operatives would be caught at the same moment he was. She relished the thought of finally catching the man she'd been after. Red accompanied her, hoping to get a piece of the action for himself. Purple, not being a fighter, waited anxiously in his room.  
  
Tah and Red stopped next to the room that belonged to both Tzen and Vil. They had pinpointed his location on the ship, so there was no possibility of his escape. The two waited for a few seconds, and then opened the door at the proper time. "Vil!" yelled Tah triumphantly, "You are under arrest by the Irken Empire!"  
  
Vil was indeed in the room, filling a pack with some apparently important datapads. He glared at Tah. "What is the meaning of this?" he asked coldly. He then noticed Red standing behind her. He wiggled his antennae in salute. "My liege...."  
  
"Evidence has been procured against you, Vil. I will ask you to put your claws where I can see them!"  
  
Vil glanced over to the Tzen's plants and mused in a low growl, "He was a traitor!"  
  
"I said put your hands where I can see them!"  
  
"Yeah!" agreed Red in a dangerous voice. "You don't want me to use this." He motioned to the blaster that he held in one hand.  
  
Vil paused for a moment, and stood very still for a long time. Tah didn't like the growing tenseness in the air. She was just about to wart Vil once more when, with a quick and smooth motion, he lifted his hand out of the bag he'd been packing to reveal a blaster of his own. Without a moment's warning, Red was holding his side. His blaster fell on the floor. Vil took this opportunity to attempt to rush past Tah, but she thrust her gangly body in his direction. She activated her long spider legs, using them to entangle her enemy. Both she and Vil writhed on the floor, each trying to overcome the other. Tah had the advantage of size, but Vil proved to be uncommonly strong. He reached to his belt and pulled out a knife, a primitive weapon but one suited to close combat. Tah reached to grab his wrist and keep the long blade away from her throat. In the corner of her mind, Tah wondered how Red was doing. She could hear him moan from the far side of the room, and she prayed his wound was not fatal. Her attention suddenly turned back to her combatant when he managed to swing around on top of her. Now he had the advantage. She tried to claw at him with one hand while keeping that knife away with the other. She kicked at him with her long legs, and was happy when she gave him a hard blow to the gut. The pain cause him to hesitate for a moment, which let her swing back around on top of him. She thought she would best him until he brought up his two short legs and thrust her away, slamming her against the wall. She had no time to move before he lunged at her. He grabbed one of her wrists, holding hit against the wall, while her threatened her with the knife. She tried to keep it away with her free hand. He responded by shoving the blade into her arm. She yelled with pain, before she futilely tried to kick him away. She couldn't move her arm now, and she had no defense. He repositioned the knife in his hand, preparing to slit her throat, when a loud noise was heard and his expression changed. Tah watched as Vil fell sideways onto the floor, a blackened laser-blast disfiguring his head. She looked up at Red, who stood holding a blaster in one hand and his bleeding side in the other.  
  
Her Tallest held a look of grim satisfaction on his face. "That was more difficult than I thought it would be." He then staggered and Tah raced to help him stand. "Sorry I took the kill from you..."  
  
"I think we should hurry along to the infirmary," she panted. She then looked down at Vil, and the brain meats that were splattered about the floor. "I don't think we need to worry about him.  
  
########################################################################  
  
Twaine staggered toward his room. He'd worked very late, later than he usually did. He'd considered going to the Entertainment Center to socialize a little, but for some reason he just didn't feel in the mood. Instead he typed away at his computer until his eyes were too tired to see strait. He turned into the corridor where his room was located and stopped. Something was in front of his door. He walked toward it and picked the object up. It was a round, glass figurine. Inside, wisps of purple and green formed to shape a miniature nebula. He glanced around nervously, as had been his habit lately. He then looked back at the figurine. "I collect these..."  
  
"I know you do." The voice came from behind the nearby trash receptacle. It was a familiar voice. Twaine stood for a moment, his face emotionless. He lifted his hand as if he was about to ignore the voice and open his door to enter, but he changed his mind. Instead he walked over to the trash can. "What do you want?" He asked in a bland tone as he approached.  
  
The trash can cleared its throat. "Er, well..." it began, "I just wanted to apologize for how I've acted in the past."  
  
Twaine glanced down at the floor, a look of disinterest characterizing his face. "Is that so? You've had a change of mind?"  
  
"A..." Yempt clenched his fists with frustration. He was no good at this mushy stuff. "A change of squiggly." He peeked out from behind the trash receptacle and frowned. Twaine didn't look too receptive. A twitch of antennae was the only sign of acknowledgement.  
  
"Squiggly..." Twaine thought aloud. "Squiggly's are fickle fiends indeed. Fickle like a pickle."  
  
"What?"  
  
"Fickle like a flying fiend pickle." Twaine nodded solemnly, as if what he'd said was an undying truth of the universe.  
  
Yempt came out from behind the trashcan. "What is that supposed to mean? You aren't making any sense!"  
  
Twaine gave Yempt a severe look. "You should beware of those things fickle like a flying fiend pickle. Things that are fickle are changeable, and unexpected things may happen. I know how you detest change and the unexpected."  
  
Yempt stepped closer, now openly pleading. "But you're unexpected, and I like you! You're just what I needed to change my mind about things. It isn't as bad as I thought, and it's all due to you! If you don't forgive me, things will go back to the way they were. My life will remain stagnant and uninteresting. Please, Twaine. I want you to take notice of me again. Talk to me, say strange things to me, and add interest to my life!"  
  
For an instant Yempt didn't know if his appeal had worked. Twaine stood there with his arms crossed, examining him as if he couldn't make up his mind. Yempt squirmed with anticipation. And then he was knocked down as the researcher pounced. "Oh, how can I resist a cute little face like that. My little lovey-dovey, pancake, waffle iron! Come here and kiss me!"  
  
"Whoa! I didn't say ANYTHING about ki - !"  
  
########################################################################  
  
It was nearing the nighttime hours on the ship, a fact Tah was unaware of as she sat in a cozy chair in the library, reading a book. The day had proven successful, Tallest Red was safely recovering in the infirmary, and she had absolutely nothing to do. It was so nice. Later on, she would meet Clay and Dak at the Entertainment Center to celebrate.  
  
The sound of an Irken's voice pulled her away from her story. The poetry group was meeting, and Tah was happy to see that they're performances had improved since the last time she'd seen them. She stood up and walked closer, in order to better listen. The current performer was a middle- sized male with orange-red eyes. His head was gigantic. However, this was overshadowed by the fact that his inflection was magnificent. Tah absently wondered if there was a group dedicated to the study of Ancient Irken – for there are so many works of art written in that language, and she didn't think they are performed often enough. Perhaps she would endeavor to create such a group, if her new job allows for that much free time.  
  
When the performer sat down she applauded his presentation and then volunteered herself to recite. She was pleased to see that a couple of them remembered her from the last time she'd joined them, and welcomed their smiles of anticipation. She thought of a piece, and then took a deep breath. "Ra'kra Sheen ba Lik Teth Dra, by Traun."

"Ra'kra sheen ba lik Teth Dra

Ma rokreen fra za marishibo

Loreen tra ma Pishidra

Pethdra fra tuk ba likibo

Shra ba jerradome kara dee

Shra be jerradome frara lee"

She smiled as she watched the faces of the amateur poets surrounding her. All looked confused, yet many also seemed transfixed by the elegance of the worlds. This was a beautiful piece, written about the majesty of Irken culture in a time where that culture was rich and colorful."Barash Irk ment ra dra koon

Keshdi ba zen fra be'vrick

Ze'yun gra tu chuchra boon

Mara fra merra gresh ta'jick

Shra ba jerradome kera dee

Shra ba jerradome frara lee"

Tah continued on for several more stanzas. Sometime during the recital she had closed her eyes to better envision the images behind the verse, but when she opened them again she saw a look of abject boredom on the faces of the entire group. She realized that the poem may not sound as meaningful to them since they did not know the language. She finished the stanza she was on, figuring that they wouldn't realize that she was stopping short, and politely accepted their half-hearted applause. Then, behind a stand of bookshelves, came a louder set of applause. Tallest Purple hovered out from behind, much to the surprise of herself and the entire poetry group. A twinkle of amusement lingered in his eye, letting her know that he noticed her premature ending. She was about to sit down when he spoke, "Bra shizu kra – berra te'lac desa?"  
  
Tah wondered why he was speaking in the ancient tongue. From the bewildered glances on everyone else's face, she could tell that she was not the only one. She stepped back, as he started to approach.  
  
He cleared his throat, as if preparing to say something important. He glanced down at a datapad he carried, and then set it aside before continuing. "Huk'ra dra grish ma'trenda zet, by Purple.""Huk'ra dra grish ma'trenda zet

Tuk drala merra cra'de cret

Pe derk'da beesha quet xenafra

Orga fra bee'ta don Tah serrdra"

Tah couldn't believe what she was hearing. It was a poem written in the old language, and apparently written by him. As he continued, she was embarrassed to realize the content of his creation. It was about her, and him, and he was elaborating on tender things relating to the both of them. However, her embarrassment did subside a bit when she realized that no on could understand exactly what he was saying. Yet it was not long until his longing glances and beseeching posture made his meaning clear. Soon the onlookers gave curious glances toward her direction, and she once again started to blush.  
  
As he continued he slowly hovered closer. And then, almost as an afterthought, he turned off his hover belt and actually started to walk. Tah was not sure what this gesture meant exactly, but everybody else seemed shocked. Indeed, it was a rare thing to see either of the Tallest using their feet. The only time she could remember seeing either of them walking was when Red was fighting or exercising, or when she'd been alone with Purple in his room. He was now within arm's reach of her. All eyes were on the two of them. He was speaking words of love that only she could understand, holding her hand, touching her in front of other Irkens. And then he spoke the words, "Tra'za fra Tah bra Huk'ra – Vollorm dre ba granna Huk'zet?"  
  
At that moment she forgot everyone else in the room. There were no confused amateur poets. There were no curious librarians. There was only Purple and herself, and the question that lingered in the air. She plunged herself into his arms, repeating with joy her reply, "Grasha me teth! Grasha me teth!" She could feel his lithe arms wrapping around her as their antennae intertwined. Somewhere in the distance there was the sound of surprised onlookers.  
  
Further in the distance Tzen watched the touching scene. He smiled as he continued out the library and into the hall. In his arms he held a puzzle that he was borrowing from a friend. As he met people he knew in the hall he nodded and grinned at them, friendly as always. When he got to his room he made himself some tea, and sat down by his collection of plants. For a moment his eyes wandered to Vil's room, and he considered the possibility of getting a new roommate. He then sighed. "Well," he commented absently to himself, "that was an ordeal. He was one of my best, too. It's a shame." He opened the box and laid out the contents onto his table. His fingers immediately began to organize the pieces. "Well, sacrifices sometimes must be made." He then frowned as he collected recent events in his head. "I'll have to start from scratch." He nodded; steady determination spread across his face, and placed the first piece in the puzzle. 


End file.
